Air conditioner and method for controlling the same

ABSTRACT

An air conditioner (AC) indoor unit includes a housing having an inlet and an outlet; a heat exchanger arranged inside the housing; a blower fan for sucking in air at the inlet to be subject to heat exchange with the heat exchanger, and discharging the heat-exchanged air out of the outlet; and an air flow control device for controlling an air flow discharged from the outlet by sucking in air around the outlet. The AC indoor unit may control the direction of a discharged air flow without a conventional blade structure, thereby increasing an amount of discharged air, reducing circulation noise, and enabling design differentiation.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation application of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 15/145,199 filed on May 3, 2016 which claimspriority to and the benefit of Korean Patent Applications No.10-2015-0063809 filed on May 7, 2015, No. 10-2015-0148190 filed on Oct.23, 2015, No. 10-2015-0160750 filed on Nov. 16, 2015, No.10-2015-0147977 filed on Oct. 23, 2015, No. 10-2015-0148189 filed onOct. 23, 2015, and No. 10-2016-0035926 filed on Mar. 25, 2016, thedisclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in theirentirety.

BACKGROUND

1. Field

The following description relates to an air conditioner and method forcontrolling the same, whereby a discharged air flow is controlledwithout a blade structure.

2. Description of the Related Art

An air conditioner (AC) is equipped with a compressor, a condenser, anexpansion valve, an evaporator, a blower fan, and the like, forcontrolling indoor temperature, humidity, air flows, etc., usingrefrigeration cycles. The ACs may be classified into split ACs havingtwo separate parts: the indoor unit to be installed indoors and theoutdoor unit to be installed outdoors, and packaged ACs having theindoor unit and the outdoor unit located in a single housing.

The AC indoor unit includes a heat exchanger for exchanging heat betweenrefrigerants and air, a blower fan for circulating air, and a motor fordriving the blower fan, to cool or heat an indoor room.

The AC indoor unit may also have a structure for controlling adischarged air flow, to discharge the air cooled or heated by the heatexchanger in various directions. The structure for controlling adischarged air flow may commonly include a vertical or horizontal bladeequipped in an outlet, and a driving system for driving the blade toturn. The AC indoor unit controls the direction of an air flow bycontrolling the turning angle of the blade.

With the structure to control a discharged air flow using the blade, theamount of discharged air may be reduced because the blade interfereswith air flow, and circulating noise may increase due to turbulenceproduced around the blade. Furthermore, because a pivot of the blade isformed to be straight, the shape of the outlet is restricted to thestraight shape.

SUMMARY

Additional aspects and/or advantages will be set forth in part in thedescription which follows and, in part, will be apparent from thedescription, or may be learned by practice of the disclosure.

The present disclosure relates to an air conditioner (AC) indoor unitcapable of controlling a discharged air flow without a blade structure.

The present disclosure relates to an AC that prevents air dischargedfrom an outlet from being sucked back into an inlet.

The present disclosure relates to an AC that prevents air dischargedfrom an outlet from being sucked back into an inlet, thereby preventingcondensation from being formed inside.

The present disclosure relates to an AC that prevents air dischargedfrom an outlet from being sucked back into an inlet, thereby increasinga range the discharged air reaches and thus improving effectiveperformance of the AC felt by the user.

The present disclosure relates to an AC that prevents air dischargedfrom an outlet from being sucked back into an inlet, thereby increasingcooling/heating efficiency.

The present disclosure relates to an AC that includes a suction guide ora control case to promote the smooth flow of air to the inside of theAC.

In accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure, an airconditioner (AC) includes a housing having an and an outlet; a main fanfor drawing air from the inlet and discharging the air to the outlet; anauxiliary fan arranged to draw air from around the outlet in order tochange a direction of discharged air discharged from the outlet; and aguide path for guiding air drawn by the auxiliary fan.

The housing may include a bottom housing having the inlet and theoutlet, and a middle housing combined on the top of the bottom housing,and the guide path may be formed between the middle housing and thebottom housing.

The housing may include an inflow hole to draw air around the outletinto the guide path, and a discharging hole to discharge air from theguide path.

The inflow hole may be located further away from a center of the airconditioner than the outlet, and the discharging hole is located closerto the center of the air conditioner than the outlet.

The guide path may include a first path to guide air around the outletin a first direction in which the outlet extends, and a second path toguide the air from the first path in a second direction different fromthe first direction.

The housing may have another outlet, the outlets of the housing may bearranged to be separated from one another, and the second path may beformed between the outlets of the housing.

The Air conditioner may include another auxiliary fan and another guidepath including another first path and another second path, and the firstpaths and the second paths correspond to the auxiliary fansrespectively.

The housing may include a partition to divide the first paths.

Each of the first paths may be symmetrical with respect to thecorresponding auxiliary fan.

The housing may include a guide part arranged at a point where the firstpath and the second path join, in order to change a direction of airflowing in the first path to the second path.

The housing may include a bridge formed between the outlets to form thesecond path.

The AC may further include a fan case to house the auxiliary fan, andthe fan case may be arranged on the bridge.

The AC may further include a display unit for displaying information,and the display unit may be mounted on the bridge.

Each of the outlet and the inflow hole may have an arc form.

In accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure, an airconditioner (AC) includes a housing having an inlet and an outlet; aheat exchanger arranged inside the housing; a main fan for drawing airat the inlet to be subject to heat exchange with the heat exchanger, anddischarging the heat-exchanged air out of the outlet; and a drain trayarranged to collect water condensed at the heat exchanger, wherein thedrain tray comprises a drain tray outlet through which air to bedischarged to the outlet passes, and a discharging guide rib arranged inthe drain tray outlet.

The discharging guide rib may include a first discharging guide ribextending in a first direction in which the drain tray outlet extendsand a second discharging guide rib extending in radial second directiondifferent from the first direction.

The housing may include a housing discharging guide rib arranged toextend in the second direction to correspond to the second dischargingguide rib.

In an aspect of the present disclosure, an air conditioner (AC) includesa housing having an inlet and an outlet; a heat exchanger arrangedinside the housing; a main fan for draw air at the inlet to be subjectto heat exchange with the heat exchanger, and discharging theheat-exchanged air out of the outlet; a drain tray arranged to collectwater condensed at the heat exchanger and having an opening throughwhich air sucked into the inlet passes; and a control case arrangedoutside of a perimeter of the opening in the radial direction to houseelectronic parts and having a curved part to correspond to the perimeterof the opening.

The AC may further include a suction guide combined onto the inlet andhaving a suction path to guide air drawn through the inlet to the mainfan.

The control case may be arranged between the drain tray and the suctionguide.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other objects, features and advantages of the presentdisclosure will become more apparent to those of ordinary skill in theart by describing in detail exemplary embodiments thereof with referenceto the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows an air conditioner (AC) indoor unit, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 shows a side cross-sectional view of the AC indoor unit of FIG.1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of part ‘O’ of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional plane view cut along line I-I of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional plane view cut along line II-II of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of an AC control system, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 is a side cross-sectional view of an AC indoor unit, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 is a side cross-sectional view of an AC indoor unit, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional plane view of an AC indoor unit, accordingto an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional plane view of AC indoor unit, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 11 shows an AC indoor unit, according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 12 shows a side cross-sectional view of the AC indoor unit of FIG.11;

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of an AC indoor unit, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 14 is a side cross-sectional view illustrating a part of the ACindoor unit of FIG. 13;

FIG. 15 shows an example of an inflow hole of an air flow control deviceof the present disclosure, in comparison with that of FIG. 4, the inflowhole being formed of multiple holes;

FIGS. 16 and 17 show an example of an inflow hole of an air flow controldevice of the present disclosure, in comparison with that of FIG. 4, theinflow hole being formed to have a variable width;

FIG. 18 shows an example of an inflow hole of an air flow control deviceof the present disclosure, in comparison with that of FIG. 4, the inflowhole being formed of multiple slits that extend in the radial direction;

FIG. 19 shows an example of an inflow hole of an air flow control deviceof the present disclosure, in comparison with that of FIG. 4, the inflowhole being formed of multi-slits;

FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a key part of an ACindoor unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, incomparison with that of FIG. 7;

FIG. 21 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a key part of an ACindoor unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, incomparison with that of FIG. 20;

FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a key part of an ACindoor unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, incomparison with that of FIG. 20;

FIG. 23 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a key part of an ACindoor unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, incomparison with that of FIG. 20;

FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a key part of an ACindoor unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, incomparison with that of FIG. 21; and

FIG. 25 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a key part of an ACindoor unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, incomparison with that of FIG. 21.

FIG. 26 is a perspective view of an AC, according to an embodiment ofthe present disclosure.

FIG. 27 is a bottom view of the AC shown in FIG. 26.

FIG. 28 is an exploded view of the AC shown in FIG. 26.

FIG. 29 is a side cross-section cut along the line from I to I as shownin FIG. 27.

FIG. 30 is an embodiment of the AC of FIG. 26;

FIG. 31 is an embodiment of the AC of FIG. 26;

FIG. 32 is an embodiment of the AC of FIG. 26;

FIG. 33 is a perspective view of a drain tray shown in FIG. 28;

FIG. 34 is an unfolded view of a discharging guide rib shown in FIG. 33;

FIG. 35 is an embodiment of the discharging guide rib shown in FIG. 34;

FIG. 36 is an embodiment of the discharging guide rib shown in FIG. 33;

FIG. 37 is an expanded view of part ‘O’ indicated in FIG. 29;

FIG. 38 is a view exploded into the middle housing and bottom housing asshown in FIG. 28;

FIG. 39 shows air circulation by an air flow control device of the ACshown in FIG. 26;

FIG. 40 is a cross-sectional view of a part where a display unit of theAC of FIG. 26 is arranged;

FIG. 41 shows a discharging hole of the AC shown in FIG. 26;

FIG. 42 shows an embodiment of the discharging hole of FIG. 41 viewedfrom the radial direction of the outlet;

FIG. 43 shows an embodiment of the discharging hole of FIG. 41 viewedfrom the radial direction of the outlet;

FIG. 44 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the discharging holeof FIG. 41;

FIG. 45 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the discharging holeof FIG. 41;

FIG. 46 is a bottom view of an AC with a grill shown in FIG. 26eliminated;

FIG. 47 is a view of part ‘A’ indicated in FIG. 46, viewed obliquelyfrom below;

FIG. 48 is a view of part ‘B’ indicated in FIG. 46, viewed obliquelyfrom below;

FIG. 49 is an embodiment of the bottom housing of FIG. 48;

FIG. 50 is an embodiment of the bottom housing of FIG. 48;

FIG. 51 is a cross-sectional view cut along line II to II indicated inFIG. 29;

FIG. 52 is a bottom view of the middle housing shown in FIG. 28;

FIG. 53 is an embodiment of the middle housing of FIG. 51;

FIG. 54 is an embodiment of the middle housing of FIG. 51;

FIG. 55 is an embodiment of the middle housing of FIG. 51;

FIG. 56 is an embodiment of the bottom housing of FIG. 51;

FIG. 57 is an embodiment of the AC of FIG. 26;

FIG. 58 is an embodiment of the AC of FIG. 26;

FIG. 59 is a perspective view of an AC indoor unit, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 60 is a side cross-sectional view cut along the line I to Iindicated in FIG. 59;

FIG. 61 is an exploded view of an AC, according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 62 is an exploded view of a bottom housing of an AC, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 63 is a bottom view of an AC with a second bottom housingeliminated, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 64 is an enlarged view of a part of what is shown in FIG. 60;

FIG. 65 is a perspective bottom view of a separated suction panel of anAC, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 66 is a partially cross-sectional view of a suction guide of an AC,according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 67 is an exploded view of some parts of an AC, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 68 is a partially cross-sectional view of a suction guide of an AC,according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 69 is an exploded view of a control case, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 70 is a floor plan of a Printed Circuit Board (PCB), according toan embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 71 is a floor plan of a PCB assembled in the lower case of acontrol case, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

FIGS. 72, 73, 74, and 75 illustrate a wire held in a wire holder,according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference will now be made in detail to the embodiments, examples ofwhich are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein likereference numerals refer to like elements throughout. The embodimentsare described below to explain the present disclosure by referring tothe figures.

Embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described in detail.

FIG. 1 shows an air conditioner (AC) indoor unit, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2 shows a sidecross-sectional view of the AC indoor unit of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is anenlarged view of part ‘O’ of FIG. 2. FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional planeview cut along line I-I of FIG. 2. FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional planeview cut along line II-II of FIG. 2. Technically speaking, the sidecross-sectional view of FIG. 2 is a revolved section view cut along lineIII to III of FIG. 3.

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 5, an AC indoor unit in accordance with anembodiment of the present disclosure will be described.

An AC indoor unit 1 may be installed on the ceiling C. At least a partof the AC indoor unit 1 may be embedded in the ceiling C.

The AC indoor unit 1 may include a housing 10 having an inlet 20 and anoutlet 21, a heat exchanger 30 arranged inside the housing 10, and ablower fan 40 for circulating air.

Viewed from the vertical direction, the housing 10 may have anapproximately circular shape. The housing 10 may include a top housing11, a middle housing 12 combined on the bottom of the top housing 11,and a bottom housing 13 combined on the bottom of the middle housing 12.At least parts of the top housing 11 and middle housing 12 may beembedded in the ceiling C.

The inlet 20 for sucking in air may be formed in the center of thebottom housing 13, and the outlet 21 for discharging air may be formedaround and outside the inlet 20. Viewed from the vertical direction, theoutlet 21 may have an approximately circular shape. Specifically, theoutlet 21 may include a plurality of arcs separated from one another bybridges 70 d, as viewed from the vertical direction.

With this structure, the AC indoor unit 1 may suck in air at the bottom,cool or heat the air, and discharge the cooled or heated air out of thebottom.

The bottom housing 13 may have a Coanda curved part 14 to guide the airdischarged through the outlet 21. The Coanda curved part 14 may guide anair flow discharged though the outlet 21 to adhere closely to and flowacross the Coanda curved part 14.

A grill 15 may be combined onto the bottom of the bottom housing 13 tofilter out dust from air sucked into the inlet 20.

The heat exchanger 30 may include a tube 32 in which refrigerantscirculate, and a header 31 connected to an external refrigerant tube tosupply or collect refrigerants to or from the tube 32, as shown in FIG.5. The tube 32 may have heat exchange pins to expand a heat radiationarea.

Viewed from the vertical direction, the heat exchanger 30 may have anapproximately circular shape. Specifically, the tube 32 of the heatexchanger 30 may have a circular shape. The heat exchanger 30 may reston a drain tray 16 for condensed water generated in the heat exchanger30 to be collected in the drain tray 16.

The blower fan 40 may be located on inner side in the radial directionof the heat exchanger 30. The blower fan 40 may be a centrifugal fanthat sucks in air in the axial direction and releases the air in theradial direction. The AC indoor unit 1 may include a blower motor 41 fordriving the blower fan 40. The blower fan 40 may be named main fan andcurrent control fan 60 which is described later may be named auxiliaryfan.

With this structure, the AC indoor unit 1 may suck in air in a room,cool or heat the air, and then release the cooled or heated air back tothe room.

The AC indoor unit 1 may further include an air flow control device 50for controlling a discharged air flow.

The air flow control device 50 may control the direction of thedischarged air flow by sucking in air around the outlet 21 to change thepressure. Furthermore, the air flow control device 50 may control anamount of sucking air around the outlet 21. In other words, the air flowcontrol device 50 may control the direction of a discharged air flow bycontrolling the amount of sucking air around the outlet 21.

Controlling the direction of a discharged air flow herein refers tocontrolling an angle of the discharged air flow.

In sucking in air around the outlet 21, the air flow control device 50may suck in air from one side of a direction in which the discharged airflow flows.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 3, given that a direction in which thedischarged air flow flows when the air flow control device 50 is notactivated is denoted as direction A1, the air flow control device 50,when activated, may change the direction for the discharged air flow toflow to direction A2 by sucking in (S) air from one side of thedirection A1.

At this time, the angle of changing direction may be controlled based onthe amount of air suction. For example, the less the amount of airsuction, the less the angle of changing direction, and the more theamount of air suction, the more the angle of changing direction.

The air flow control device 50 may discharge (D) air sucked in to oneside of the direction A1 in which the discharged air flow flows.Especially, the air flow control device 50 may discharge air in theopposite direction to the direction in which the air was sucked in. Bydoing this, it may expand the angle of discharging air flow, therebycontrolling the air flow more smoothly.

The air flow control device 50 may suck in air from the outer side inthe radial direction of the outlet 21 (or from above the discharged airflow). Like this, as the air flow control device 50 sucks in air fromthe outer side in the radial direction of the outlet 21, the dischargedair flow may widely spread out from the center part in the radialdirection of the outlet 21 to the outer side in the radial direction.

The air flow control device 50 may include an air flow control fan 60for producing a sucking force to suck in air around the outlet 21, anair flow control motor 61 for driving the air flow control fan 60, and aguide paths 70 for guiding the air sucked in by the air flow control fan60.

The air flow control fan 60 may be housed in a fan case 62. In theembodiment, there may be three air flow control fans 60 each formed with120 degrees. The air flow control fan 60 is not limited thereto, butmore or fewer air flow control fans 60 with various arrangements may bedesigned.

Although the air flow control fan 60 corresponds to a centrifugal fan inthe embodiment, it is not limited thereto, and various fans, such asaxial-flow fans, cross-flow fans, mixed flow fans, etc., may also beused for the air flow control fan 60.

The guide path 70 connects an inflow hole 71 for sucking in air aroundthe outlet 21 to the discharging hole 72 for discharging the air suckedin. When a path to connect the inlet 20 and the outlet 21 is called amain path, the guide path 70 may be said to be formed by being branchedfrom the main path.

The inflow hole 71 may be formed on the Coanda curved part 14 of thebottom housing 13. Accordingly, the discharged air flow bent toward theinflow hole 71 of the bottom housing 13 according to a sucking force ofthe air flow control fan 60 may flow across the surface of the Coandacurved part 14.

The inflow hole 71 may be formed of a plurality of arc-shaped slits. Theplurality of slits may be arranged in the circumferential direction tobe separated from one another with a predetermined gap.

The discharging hole 72 may be located around the outlet 21 on theopposite side to the inflow hole 71. Specifically, the discharging hole72 may be formed in the fan case 62.

As described above, with this structure, the air flow control device 50may discharge (D) air to one side of the direction A1 in which thedischarged air flow flows. Especially, the air flow control device 50may discharge air in the direction opposite to the sucking direction,thereby expanding an angle of discharging air flow and controlling theair flow more smoothly.

The guide path 70 may include a first path 70 a formed in thecircumferential direction on the outer side of the housing 10 andfunneled with the inflow hole 71, a second path 70 b extending inward inthe radial direction from the first path 70 a, and a third path 70 cformed inside the fan case 62. The second path 70 b may be formed insidethe bridge 70 d that crosses the outlet 21.

Accordingly, air sucked in through the inflow hole 71 may be dischargedout of the discharging hole 72 through the first path 70 a, the secondpath 70 b, and the third path 70 c.

The structure of the guide path 70 is, however, only by way of example,and there are no limitations on the structure, shape, and arrangement ofthe guide path 70 as long as the guide path 70 connects the inflow hole71 and the discharging hole 72.

With the structure, the AC indoor unit in accordance with embodiments ofthe present disclosure may control a discharged air flow without a bladestructure, as compared to a conventional AC indoor unit in which a bladeis arranged in the outlet and an air flow is controlled by turning theblade. Accordingly, because there is no interference by a blade, anamount of discharge may increase and circulation noise may be lessened.

Furthermore, in contrast with the conventional AC indoor unit having anoutlet that has to be formed in a straight shape to turn the blade, theAC indoor unit according to embodiments of the present disclosure has anoutlet that may be formed in a circular shape, and accordingly thehousing and the heat exchanger may also be formed in the circular shape,thereby improving the aesthetic appearance with the differentiateddesign. Furthermore, given that the shape of a common blower fan iscircular, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, air flows morenaturally, pressure loss is reduced, and as a result, cooling or heatingperformance of the AC may be improved.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of an AC control system, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

An AC may include a controller 92 for controlling general operation, aninput unit 90 for receiving operation instructions, an outdoortemperature sensor 91 a for detecting an outdoor temperature, an indoortemperature sensor 91 b for detecting an indoor temperature, anevaporator temperature sensor 91 c for detecting temperature of anevaporator, an indicator unit 93 for indicating various information tothe outside, a compressor driver 94 for driving a compressor 95, anelectronic expansion valve 96, a blower fan driver 97 for driving theblower fan 40, and an air flow control fan driver 98 for driving the airflow control fan 60.

The controller 92 may receive various operation instructions and/ortemperature information from the input unit 90, outdoor temperaturesensor 91 a, indoor temperature sensor 91 b, and evaporator temperaturesensor 91 c, and send control instructions to the indicator unit 93,compressor driver 94, electronic expansion valve 96, blower fan driver97, and air flow control fan driver 98 based on the received instructionand/or information.

The air flow control fan driver 98 may control whether to drive the airflow control motor 61 and the driving speed according to the controlinstruction from the controller 92. By doing this, it may control anamount of air to be sucked in around the outlet 21 and the direction ofa discharged air flow.

FIG. 7 is a side cross-sectional view of an AC indoor unit, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure. Referring to FIG. 7, an ACindoor unit in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosurewill be described. The same features as in the aforementioned embodimentare denoted by the same reference numerals, and the overlappingdescription will be omitted herein.

An air flow control device 250 of an AC indoor unit 200 may suck in (S)air from around the outlet 21, and discharge (D) the air sucked in tothe inside of the housing 10.

In the embodiment, the air flow control device 250 may discharge the airsucked in from around the outlet 21 toward the upper reaches of the heatexchanger 30 according to the direction in which the air flow flows. Thedischarged air is cooled or heated by the heat exchanger 30, and thenfinally discharged into the room through the outlet 21.

An inflow hole 271 for sucking in air around the outlet 21 to releasethe air to the inside of the housing 10 is formed in the bottom housing13, and a discharging hole 272 for discharging the air sucked in isformed inside the housing 10.

A guide path 270 is formed to connect the inflow hole 217 and thedischarging hole 272. The guide path 270 may include a first path 270 aformed in the circumferential direction and funneled with the inflowhole 271, a second path 270 b extending inward in the radial directionfrom the first path 270 a, a third path 270 c formed inside the fan case62, and a fourth path 270 d extending from the third path 270 c to theinside of the housing 10 and funneled with the discharging hole 272.

Accordingly, air sucked in through the inflow hole 271 may be dischargedout of the discharging hole 272 through the first path 270 a, the secondpath 270 b, the third path 270 c, and the fourth path 270 d.

The structure of the guide path 270 is, however, only by way of example,and there are no limitations on the structure, shape, and arrangement ofthe guide path 270 as long as the guide path 70 connects the inflow hole271 and the discharging hole 272.

FIG. 8 is a side cross-sectional view of an AC indoor unit, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure. Referring to FIG. 8, an ACindoor unit in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosurewill be described. The same features as in the aforementionedembodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and theoverlapping description will be omitted herein.

An air flow control device 350 of an AC indoor unit 300 may beconfigured not to suck in air from the outer side in the radialdirection of the outlet 21 (or from above a discharged air flow) but tosuck in air from the inner side in the radial direction of the outlet 21(or from under the discharged air flow). For this, an inflow hole 371for sucking in air around the outlet 21 may be formed on the inner sidein the radial direction of the outlet 21.

Air sucked in through the inflow hole 371 may be discharged (D) out ofthe discharging hole 372 through a guide path 370.

Like this, as the air flow control device 350 sucks in (S) air from theinner side in the radial direction of the outlet 21, the discharged airflow may be concentrated onto the central part in the radial directionfrom the outer side in the radial direction of the outlet 21.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional plane view of an AC indoor unit, accordingto an embodiment of the present disclosure. Referring to FIG. 9, an ACindoor unit in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosurewill be described. The same features as in the aforementionedembodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and theoverlapping description will be omitted herein.

An AC indoor unit 400 may include a housing 410 having an inlet and anoutlet 421, a heat exchanger 430 arranged inside the housing 410, and ablower fan 440 for circulating air.

Viewed from the vertical direction, the housing 410 may have anapproximately square shape. The inlet for sucking in air may be formedin the bottom center of the housing 410, and the outlet 421 fordischarging air may be formed around and outside the inlet.

The outlet 421 may have an approximately square form, when viewed fromthe vertical direction, with round corners 421 a. Unlike theconventional AC indoor unit having an outlet that has to be in astraight shape to turn a blade, the outlet 421 in accordance with theembodiment may be allowed to have such round corners 421 a because ithas no blade structure.

Alternatively, the outlet 421 may have a triangular, pentagonal,hexagonal shape, or the like, other than the square shape.

The heat exchanger 430 may include a tube 432 for circulatingrefrigerants, and a header 431 connected to an external refrigerant tubefor supplying or collecting refrigerants into or from the tube 432, anda blower fan 440 may be located within the radius of the heat exchanger430.

FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional plane view of an AC indoor unit, accordingto an embodiment of the present disclosure. Referring to FIG. 10, an ACindoor unit in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosurewill be described. The same features as in the aforementionedembodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals, and theoverlapping description will be omitted herein.

An AC indoor unit 500 may include a housing 510 having an inlet and anoutlet 521, a heat exchanger 530 arranged inside the housing 510, and ablower fan 540 for circulating air.

Viewed from the vertical direction, the housing 510 may have anapproximately square shape. The inlet for sucking in air may be formedin the bottom center of the housing 510, and the outlet 521 fordischarging air may be formed on the outer side in the radial directionof the bottom of the housing 510.

The outlet 521 may have an approximately square form, when viewed fromthe vertical direction, with not straight but curved sides. Unlike theconventional AC indoor unit having an outlet that has to be in astraight shape to turn a blade, the outlet 521 in accordance with theembodiment may be allowed to have such a curved shape because it has noblade structure.

The heat exchanger 530 may include a tube 532 for circulatingrefrigerants, and a header 531 connected to an external refrigerant tubefor supplying or collecting refrigerants into or from the tube 532, anda blower fan 540 may be located within the radius of the heat exchanger530.

FIG. 11 shows an AC indoor unit, according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure. FIG. 12 shows a side cross-sectional view of the ACindoor unit of FIG. 11.

Referring to FIGS. 11 and 12, an AC indoor unit in accordance with anembodiment of the present disclosure will be described. The samefeatures as in the aforementioned embodiments are denoted by the samereference numerals, and the overlapping description will be omittedherein.

An AC indoor unit 600 may be installed on the wall C. The AC indoor unit600 may include a housing 610 having an inlet 620 and an outlet 621, aheat exchanger 630 arranged inside the housing 610, and a blower fan 640for circulating air.

The housing 610 may include a rear housing 612 attached to the wall W,and a front housing 611 combined on the front of the rear housing 612.

The inlet 620 for sucking in air may be formed in the upper front of thefront housing 611, and the outlet 621 for discharging air may be formedin the lower part of the front housing 611. With this structure, the ACindoor unit 600 may suck in air at its upper front part, cool or heatthe air, and discharge the cooled or heated air out of its lower part.

Similar to the aforementioned embodiments, the outlet 621 may havevarious forms, such as circular, polygonal, curved, etc. The housing 610may have a Coanda curved part 614 to guide the air discharged throughthe outlet 621. The Coanda curved part 614 may guide an air flowdischarged through the outlet 621 to adhere closely to and flow acrossthe Coanda curved part 614. The blower fan 640 may be a cross-flow fan.

The AC indoor unit 600 further includes an air flow control device 650for controlling the direction of a discharged air flow by sucking in airaround the outlet 621 to change the air pressure.

The air flow control device 650 may include an air flow control fan 660for producing a sucking force to suck in air around the outlet 621, anair flow control motor 661 for driving the air flow control fan 660, anda guide path 670 for guiding the air sucked in by the air flow controlfan 660.

The guide path 70 connects an inflow hole 671 for sucking in air aroundthe outlet 621 to the discharging hole 672 for discharging the airsucked in. The inflow hole 671 may be formed on the Coanda curved part614 of the housing 610.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view of an AC indoor unit, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 14 is a side cross-sectionalview illustrating a part of the AC indoor unit of FIG. 13.

Referring to FIGS. 13 and 14, an AC indoor unit in accordance with anembodiment of the present disclosure will be described. The samefeatures as in the aforementioned embodiments are denoted by the samereference numerals, and the overlapping description will be omittedherein.

An AC indoor unit 700 may be installed to stand on the floor F. The ACindoor unit 700 may include a housing 710 having inlets 720 and outlets721, heat exchangers 730 arranged inside the housing 710, and blowerfans 740 for circulating air.

The housing 710 may include a front housing 711, a middle housing 712,and a rear housing 713. The inlets 720 for sucking in air may be formedon the top, side, and rear faces of the rear housing 713, and theoutlets 721 for discharging air may be formed on the front of the fronthousing 711. With this structure, the indoor unit 700 of the AC may suckin air at the top, sides, and back, cool or heat the air, and dischargethe cooled or heated air forward.

Similar to the aforementioned embodiments, the outlet 721 may havevarious forms, such as circular, polygonal, curved, etc. The housing 710may have a Coanda curved part 714 to guide the air discharged throughthe outlet 721. The Coanda curved part 714 may guide an air flowdischarged through the outlet 721 to adhere closely to and flow acrossthe Coanda curved part 714. The blower fan 740 may be a cross-flow fanor axial-flow fan.

The AC indoor unit 700 further includes an air flow control device 750for controlling the direction of a discharged air flow by sucking in airaround the outlet 721 to change the air pressure.

The air flow control device 750 may include an air flow control fan 760for producing a sucking force to suck in air around the outlet 721, anair flow control motor 761 for driving the air flow control fan 760, anda guide path 770 for guiding the air sucked in by the air flow controlfan 760.

The guide path 770 connects an inflow hole 771 for sucking in air aroundthe outlet 721 to the discharging hole 772 for discharging the airsucked in. The inflow hole 671 may be formed on the Coanda curved part714 of the housing 610.

FIG. 15 shows an example of an inflow hole of an air flow control deviceof the present disclosure, in comparison with that of FIG. 4, the inflowhole being formed of multiple holes.

Referring to FIG. 15, an inflow hole 171 of the air flow control devicemay include collections of a plurality of small holes 172. Specifically,the collection of a plurality of small holes 172 may constitute anarc-shaped slit, and a set of at least one of such slits may constitutethe inflow hole 171.

The structure of the inflow hole 171 formed of a plurality of smallholes 172 may prevent dust, foreign materials, etc., from being suckedin through the inflow hole 171.

FIGS. 16 and 17 show other examples of an inflow hole of an air flowcontrol device of the present disclosure, in comparison with that ofFIG. 4, the inflow hole being formed to have variable width. In FIG. 16,width of the inflow hole becomes relatively wider, and in FIG. 17, widthof the inflow hole becomes relatively narrower.

As shown in FIGS. 16 and 17, the inflow hole 173 of the air flow controldevice may include at least one arc-shaped slit 174, which may be formedto have variable width W. In other words, the opening degree of the slit174 may be controlled.

For this, the air flow control device may include a scalable fence 175to control the opening degree of the slit 174. As shown in FIG. 16, whenthe fence 175 shrinks to a minimum size, the slit 174 may reach amaximum width Wmax, and as shown in FIG. 17, when the fence 175 expandsto a maximum size, the slit 174 may reach a minimum width Wmin.

With the structure to control the opening degree of the inflow hole 173,an amount of sucking air through the inflow hole 173 may be controlled,and accordingly, the direction of a discharged air flow may becontrolled.

FIG. 18 shows an example of an inflow hole of an air flow control deviceof the present disclosure, in comparison with that of FIG. 4, the inflowhole being formed of multiple slits that extend in the radial direction.

Referring to FIG. 18, the inflow hole 176 of the air flow control devicemay be formed of a plurality of slits 177 that are formed to extend inthe radial direction. The plurality of slits 177 may be arranged in thecircumferential direction to be separated from one another with apredetermined gap.

This structure may reduce resistance in sucking in air from around theoutlet 21, thereby reducing the power required to suck in air, i.e., thenumber of turns of a fan.

FIG. 19 shows an example of an inflow hole of an air flow control deviceof the present disclosure, in comparison with that of FIG. 4, the inflowhole being formed of multi-slits.

As shown in FIG. 19, an inflow hole 178 of an air flow control devicemay be formed of a plurality of arc-shaped multi-slits.

Each multi-slit may include an inner slit 179 a located on therelatively inner side in the radial direction and an outer slit 179 blocated on the relatively outer side in the radial direction. The innerslit 179 a and the outer slit 179 b may be separated with apredetermined gap.

This structure may help precisely or reliably control the amount ofsucking air.

The inner slit 179 a and the outer slit 179 b may or may not have thesame width. Alternatively, the multi-slit may be formed of three or moreslits.

As such, the multi-slit may be designed to have a different number ofslits, different width, different separation gap, etc., as necessary.

FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a key part of an ACindoor unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, incomparison with that of FIG. 7.

Referring to FIG. 20, an AC indoor unit in accordance with an embodimentof the present disclosure will be described. The same features as in theaforementioned embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals,and the overlapping description will be omitted herein.

Unlike the aforementioned embodiments, an air flow control device 450may control the direction of a discharged air flow by blowing air aroundthe outlet 21 to change the pressure. Specifically, unlike theaforementioned embodiments in which the air flow control device controlsthe direction of a discharged air flow by producing negative pressurearound the outlet 21, the air flow control device 450 in accordance withthe embodiment may control the direction of a discharged air flow byproducing positive pressure around the outlet 21.

The air flow control device 450 may control an amount of blowing airaround the outlet 21. In other words, the air flow control device 450may control the direction of a discharged air flow by controlling anamount of blowing air around the outlet 21.

Controlling the direction of a discharged air flow herein refers tocontrolling an angle of discharging air flow. In other words, it refersto controlling whether to converge or widely spread the discharged airflow.

In blowing air around the outlet 21, the air flow control device 450 mayblow air from a side of a direction in which the discharged air flowflows.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 20, given that a direction in which thedischarged air flow flows when the air flow control device 450 is notactivated is denoted as direction A1, the air flow control device 450,when activated, may change the direction for the discharged air flow toflow to direction A2 by blowing (B) air to a side of the direction A1.

The air flow control device 450 may blow air from the inner side in theradial direction of the outlet 21 (or from under the discharged airflow). That is, while the discharged air flow relatively converges whenthe air flow control device 450 is not activated, the discharged airflow may be relatively widely spread outward in the radial directionwhen the air flow control device 450 is activated.

The air flow control device 450 may include an air flow control fan 460for producing a blowing force to blow air around the outlet 21, an airflow control motor 461 for driving the air flow control fan 460, and aguide path 470 for guiding the air flowing by the air flow control fan460.

The guide path 470 connects a duct 472 for blowing air to around theoutlet 21 to an inflow hole 471 for sucking in air.

FIG. 21 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a key part of an ACindoor unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, incomparison with that of FIG. 20.

Referring to FIG. 21, an AC indoor unit in accordance with an embodimentof the present disclosure will be described. The same features as in theaforementioned embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals,and the overlapping description will be omitted herein.

Similar to the previous embodiment, an air flow control device 550 maycontrol the direction of a discharged air flow by blowing air around theoutlet 21 to change the pressure. However, unlike the previousembodiment, the air flow control device 550 may blow air from the outerside in the radial direction of the outlet 21 (or from above thedischarged air flow).

That is, while the discharged air flow is relatively widely spread whenthe air flow control device 550 is not activated, the discharged airflow may relatively converge inward in the radial direction when the airflow control device 550 is activated.

The air flow control device 550 may include an air flow control fan 560for producing a blowing force to blow air around the outlet 21, an airflow control motor 561 for driving the air flow control fan 560, and aguide path 570 for guiding the air flowing by the air flow control fan560. The guide path 570 connects a duct 572 for blowing air to aroundthe outlet 21 to an inflow hole 571 for sucking in air.

FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a key part of an ACindoor unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, incomparison with that of FIG. 20.

Referring to FIG. 22, an AC indoor unit in accordance with an embodimentof the present disclosure will be described. The same features as in theaforementioned embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals,and the overlapping description will be omitted herein.

An air flow control device 650 may control the direction of a dischargedair flow by blowing air to around the outlet 21 to change the pressure.However, unlike the embodiments of FIGS. 20 and 21 where the air flowcontrol device controls the discharged air flow by pushing thedischarged air flow, the air flow control device 650 may control thedischarged air flow by pulling in the discharged air flow.

For this, a Coanda curved part 614 is formed around the outlet 21, andthe air flow control device 650 may discharge an auxiliary air flow X inthe direction tangential to the Coanda curved part 614.

The Coanda curved part 614 may guide the auxiliary air flow X dischargedthrough the discharging hole 672 to adhere closely to and flow acrossthe surface of the Coanda curved part 614 according to the Coandaeffect. The Coanda curved part 614 may be formed integrally with thehousing 10, e.g., the bottom housing 13.

The Coanda curved part 614 may have a form, which is approximatelyconvex toward the outlet 21. Accordingly, the velocity of the auxiliaryair flow X flowing across the Coanda curved part 614 may increase, andthe pressure may decrease. Thus, the main air flow discharged out of theoutlet 21 is pulled toward the auxiliary air flow X to change itsdirection from A1 to A2.

The direction of the auxiliary air flow X discharged through thedischarging hole 672 may be tangential to the Coanda curved part 614while approximately corresponding to the direction of the main air flow.

The guide path 670 for guiding the auxiliary air flow X connects theinflow hole 671 for sucking in air to the discharging hole 672 fordischarging the air sucked in. When a path to connect the inlet 20 andthe outlet 21 is called a main path, the guide path 70 may be said to beformed by being branched from the main path.

The discharging port 672 is formed near the Coanda curved part 614 suchthat the auxiliary air flow X is discharged in the direction tangentialto the Coanda curved part 614. Specifically, the discharging hole 672may be formed between the inner circumferential face 22 of the outlet 21and the Coanda curved part 614.

The air flow control device 650 may blow the auxiliary air X from theouter side in the radial direction of the outlet 21 (or from above themain air flow). That is, while the main discharged air flow relativelyconverges when the air flow control device 650 is not activated, themain discharged air flow may be relatively widely spread when the airflow control device 650 is activated.

The air flow control device 650 may further include an air flow controlfan 660 for blowing air to generate the auxiliary air flow X, and an airflow control motor 661 for driving the air flow control fan 660. The airflow control fan 660 is arranged separately from the main blower fan 40,and there may be multiple air flow control fans as necessary.

To increase the force of the auxiliary air flow X drawing in the mainair flow, the air flow control device 650 may increase the velocity ofthe auxiliary air flow X. In other words, the faster the velocity of theauxiliary air flow X, the greater the pressure reduction, which mayincrease the force of drawing in the main current. The velocity of theauxiliary air flow X may be faster than at least that of the main airflow.

The inflow hole 671 of the guide path 670 may be formed around theoutlet 21. Accordingly, the air flow control device 650 may generate theauxiliary air flow X by sucking in air around the outlet 21.

FIG. 23 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a key part of an ACindoor unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, incomparison with that of FIG. 20.

Referring to FIG. 23, an AC indoor unit in accordance with an embodimentof the present disclosure will be described. The same features as in theaforementioned embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals,and the overlapping description will be omitted herein.

Like the air flow control device 650 of FIG. 22, an air flow controldevice 750 in the embodiment may control a discharged air flow byblowing air to around the outlet 21 to draw in the discharged air flow.

However, unlike the air flow control device 650, the air flow controldevice 750 may blow the auxiliary air flow X from the inner side in theradial direction of the outlet 21 (or from under the main air flow).That is, while the main discharged air flow is relatively widely spreadwhen the air flow control device 750 is not activated, the maindischarged air flow may relatively converge when the air flow controldevice 750 is activated.

A Coanda curved part 714 is formed around the outlet 21, and the airflow control device 750 may discharge the auxiliary air flow X in thedirection tangential to the Coanda curved part 714.

The Coanda curved part 714 may guide the auxiliary air flow X dischargedthrough the discharging hole 772 to adhere closely to and flow acrossthe surface of the Coanda curved part 714 according to the Coandaeffect.

The Coanda curved part 714 may have a form, which is approximatelyconvex toward the outlet 21. Accordingly, the velocity of the auxiliaryair flow X flowing across the Coanda curved part 714 may increase, andthe pressure may decrease. Thus, the main air flow discharged out of theoutlet 21 is pulled in toward the auxiliary air flow X to change itsdirection from A1 to A2.

The direction of the auxiliary air flow X discharged through thedischarging hole 772 may be tangential to the Coanda curved part 714while approximately corresponding to the direction of the main air flow.

The guide path 770 for guiding the auxiliary air flow X connects theinflow hole 771 for sucking in air to the discharging hole 772 fordischarging the air sucked in.

The discharging port 772 is formed near the Coanda curved part 714 suchthat the auxiliary air flow X is discharged in the direction tangentialto the Coanda curved part 714. Specifically, the discharging hole 772may be formed between the inner circumferential face 22 of the outlet 21and the Coanda curved part 714.

The air flow control device 750 may further include an air flow controlfan 760 for blowing air to generate the auxiliary air flow X, and an airflow control motor 761 for driving the air flow control fan 760. The airflow control fan 760 is arranged separately from the main blower fan 40,and there may be multiple air flow control fans as necessary.

FIG. 24 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a key part of an ACindoor unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, incomparison with that of FIG. 21.

Referring to FIG. 24, an AC indoor unit in accordance with an embodimentof the present disclosure will be described. The same features as in theaforementioned embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals,and the overlapping description will be omitted herein.

Like the air flow control device 650 of FIG. 22, an air flow controldevice 850 in the embodiment may control a discharged air flow byblowing air to around the outlet 21 to pull in the discharged air flow.

However, unlike the air flow control device 650 of FIG. 22, the air flowcontrol device 850 may produce the auxiliary air flow X not by suckingin air from around the outlet 21, but by sucking in air from inside ofthe housing 10.

Specifically, part of air cooled by the heat exchanger 30 may bedischarged out of a discharging hole 872 through a guide path 870 toproduce the auxiliary air flow X while the remaining part of the air maybe discharged out of the outlet 21 to produce the main air flow.

A Coanda curved part 814 is formed around the outlet 21, and the airflow control device 850 may discharge the auxiliary air flow X in thedirection tangential to the Coanda curved part 814.

The guide path 870 for guiding the auxiliary air flow X connects theinflow hole 871 for sucking in air to the discharging hole 872 fordischarging the air sucked in.

The air flow control device 850 may further include an air flow controlfan 860 for blowing air to generate the auxiliary air flow X, and an airflow control motor 861 for driving the air flow control fan 860.

FIG. 25 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a key part of an ACindoor unit according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, incomparison with that of FIG. 21.

Referring to FIG. 25, an AC indoor unit in accordance with an embodimentof the present disclosure will be described. The same features as in theaforementioned embodiments are denoted by the same reference numerals,and the overlapping description will be omitted herein.

Like the air flow control device 750 of FIG. 23, an air flow controldevice 950 in the embodiment may control a discharged air flow byblowing air to around the outlet 21 to pull in the discharged air flow.

However, unlike the air flow control device 750 of FIG. 23, the air flowcontrol device 950 may produce the auxiliary air flow X not by suckingin air from around the outlet 21, but by sucking in air from inside ofthe housing 10.

Specifically, part of air in the upper reaches of the heat exchanger 30may be discharged out of a discharging hole 972 through a guide path 970to produce the auxiliary air flow X while the remaining part of the airmay be discharged out of the outlet 21 to produce the main air flow.

A Coanda curved part 914 is formed around the outlet 21, and the airflow control device 950 may discharge the auxiliary air flow X in thedirection tangential to the Coanda curved part 914.

The guide path 970 that guides the auxiliary air flow X connects theinflow hole 971 for sucking in air to the discharging hole 972 fordischarging the air sucked in.

The air flow control device 950 may further include an air flow controlfan 960 for blowing air to generate the auxiliary air flow X, and an airflow control motor 961 for driving the air flow control fan 960.

FIG. 26 is a perspective view of an AC, according to an embodiment ofthe present disclosure. FIG. 27 is a bottom view of the AC shown in FIG.26. FIG. 28 is an exploded view of the AC shown in FIG. 26. FIG. 29 is aside cross-sectional view cut along the line I-I indicated in FIG. 27.

Referring to FIGS. 26 to 29, an AC 1001 in accordance with an embodimentof the present disclosure will now be described.

The AC 1001 may be installed on the ceiling C. At least a part of the AC1001 may be built into the ceiling C.

The AC 1001 may include a housing 1010 having an inlet 1020 and anoutlet 1021, a heat exchanger 1030 arranged inside the housing 1010, anda blower fan 1040 for circulating air.

Viewed from the vertical direction, the housing 1010 may have anapproximately circular shape. The housing 1010 may include a top housing1011 arranged inside the ceiling C, a middle housing 1012 combined onthe bottom of the top housing 1011, and a bottom housing 1013 combinedon the bottom of the middle housing 1012.

The inlet 1020 for sucking in air may be formed in the center of thebottom housing 1013, and the outlet 1021 for discharging air may beformed around and outside the inlet 1020. Viewed from the verticaldirection, the outlet 1021 may have an approximately circular shape.

With this structure, the AC 1001 may suck in air at the bottom, cool orheat the air, and discharge the cooled or heated air back out of thebottom.

The bottom housing 1013 may have a first guide plane 1014 a and a secondguide plane 1014 b, which form the outlet 1021. The first guide plane1014 a may be arranged close to the inlet 1020 and the second guideplane 1014 b may be arranged farther away from the inlet 1020 than thefirst guide plane 1014 a. The first and/or second guide planes 1014 a,1014 b may include a Coanda curved part to guide the air dischargedthrough the outlet 1021. The Coanda curved part may guide an air flowdischarged through the outlet 1021 to adhere closely to and flow acrossthe Coanda curved part.

A grill 1015 may be combined onto the bottom of the bottom housing 1013to filter out dust from air sucked into the inlet 1020.

A heat exchanger 1030 may be placed inside the housing and located in anair path between the inlet 1020 and the outlet 1021. The heat exchanger1030 may include a tube (not shown) in which refrigerants circulate, anda header (not shown) connected to an external refrigerant tube to supplyor collect refrigerants to or from the tube. The tube may have heatexchange pins to expand a heat radiation area.

Viewed from the vertical direction, the heat exchanger 1030 may have anapproximately circular shape. The heat exchanger 1030 may rest on adrain tray 1016 for condensed water generated in the heat exchanger 1030to be collected in the drain tray 1016.

The blower fan 1040 may be located on inner side in the radial directionof the heat exchanger 1030. The blower fan 1040 may be a centrifugal fanthat sucks in air in the axial direction and releases the air in theradial direction. The AC 1001 may include a blower motor 1041 fordriving the blower fan 1040.

With this structure, the AC 1001 may suck in air in the room, cool orheat the air, and then release the cooled or heated air back to theroom.

The AC 1001 may further include a heat exchange pipe 1081 connected tothe heat exchanger 1030, through which refrigerants flow, and a drainpump 1082 for releasing condensate collected in a drain tray 1016. Theheat exchange pipe 1081 and drain pump 1082 may be located on the top ofa bridge 1100, which will be described later, not to block the inlet.Specifically, the heat exchange pipe 1081 may be safely received in asafe heat exchange pipe receiving part 1016 a arranged on the drain tray1016, and the drain pump 1082 may be safely received in a safe drainpump receiving part 1016 b arranged on the drain tray 1016 (see FIG.33).

Referring to FIG. 27, the AC 1001 may further include bridges 1100 thatis located adjacent to the outlet 1021 and that extends as much as apredetermined length in the circumferential direction of the outlet1021. The bridges 1100 may be separated at predetermined intervals alongthe circumferential direction, and may be three in number. The bridges1100 may be arranged to connect the first guide plane 1014 a and thesecond guide plane 1014 b.

If air is released in all directions from the outlet 1021 that is in aring shape, relatively high pressure is produced around the outlet 1021and relatively low pressure is produced around the inlet 1020.Furthermore, because the air discharged from all the directions of theoutlet 1021 forms an air curtain, air to be sucked in through the inlet1020 may not be supplied to the side of the inlet 1020. Under thissituation, the air discharged from the outlet 1021 is sucked backthrough the inlet 1020, which causes condensation inside the housing1010 and the loss of discharged air, thereby degrading the effectiveperformance felt by the user.

The bridges 1100 in accordance with an embodiment of the presentdisclosure are located on the outlet 1021 for blocking the outlet 1021as much as a predetermined length. Accordingly, the outlet 1021 may bepartitioned into a first section S1 from which air is released and asecond section S2 from which air is barely released due to the blockageby the bridges 1100. That is, the bridges 1100 may form the secondsection S2 to supply air to be sucked in through the inlet 1020.Furthermore, the bridges 1100 may promote smooth supply of air into theinlet 1020 by reducing a difference between the low pressure around theinlet 1020 and the high pressure around the outlet 1021.

The bridges 1100 may include a pair of discharging guide planes 1101which get closer as they are located close to the direction in which theair is released, so as to minimize the second section S2 formed by thebridges 1100. The air being discharged by the discharging guide planes1101 from the outlet 1021 may spread out from the outlet 1021 because ofthe discharging guide planes 1101.

Although the AC 1001 is shown in FIG. 27 to have three equidistantbridges 1100, i.e., three bridges 1100 120° apart, it is not limitedthereto and there may only be a single bridge 1100 a as shown in FIG.30. Alternatively, there may be two bridges 1100 b 180° apart as shownin FIG. 31, or may be four bridges 1100 c 90° apart as shown in FIG. 32.The plurality of bridges 1100, 1100 b, 1100 c may also be arranged alongthe circumferential direction of the outlet 1021 at different angles toeach other. Alternatively, although not shown, there may be five or morebridges arranged. That is, there are no limitations on the number of thebridges.

However, in order to form the second section S2 and promote the smoothsupply of air to be sucked in through the inlet 1020, a total sum oflengths of the bridges 1100, 1100 a, 1100 b, 1100 c may be set to 5% ormore but 40% or less of the whole circumference length of the outlet. Inother words, a ratio of the length of the second section S2 to the sumof the lengths of the first and second sections S1 and S2 may be set to5% or more but 40% or less.

Furthermore, if there are a plurality of bridges 1100, 1100 b, 1100 carranged, a display unit 1120, 1120 b, 1120 c may be arranged on thebottom of one of the bridges 1100, 1100 b, 1100 c.

With the bridges 1100, 1100 a, 1100 b, 1100 c, air discharged from theoutlet 1021 may not be sucked back into the inlet 1020 but may spreadout to cool or heat the room.

Referring to FIG. 33, the AC may further include a discharging guide rib1110 arranged in the outlet 1021 a and extending vertically along thedirection in which the air is discharged. Specifically, the dischargingguide rib 1110 may be formed on the drain tray 1016. The drain tray 1016may include a drain tray outlet 1021 a corresponding to the outlet 1021of the housing 1010, and the discharging guide rib 1110 may be arrangedin the drain tray outlet 1021 a to decrease the area of the drain trayoutlet 1021 a, thereby increasing the flow velocity of air beingdischarged through the drain tray outlet 1021 a. The discharging guiderib 1110 may guide the discharged air such that the air discharged fromthe outlet 1021 a may spread out while being discharged. The dischargingguide rib 1110 may be arranged to correspond to the first section S1 ofthe outlet 1021 in which no bridge 1100 is formed.

Furthermore, the discharging guide rib 1110 may be arranged on the draintray outlet 1021 a to reinforce the solidity of the housing 1010.

The discharging guide rib 1110 may include a first discharging guide rib1111 extending along the circumferential direction of the drain trayoutlet 1021 a, and a second discharging guide rib 1112 extending alongthe radial direction of the drain tray outlet 1021 a.

With the first discharging guide rib 1111 formed along thecircumferential direction of the drain tray outlet 1021 a and the seconddischarging guide rib 1112 formed along the radial direction of thedrain tray outlet 1021 a, the area of the drain tray outlet 1021 a maybe reduced, thereby increasing the flow velocity of the air passingthrough the drain tray outlet 1021. A plurality of the seconddischarging guide rib 1112 may be formed.

FIGS. 34 and 35 show parts of the widespread discharging guide rib 1110shown in FIG. 33.

Referring to FIG. 34, the second discharging guide rib 1112 a may beinclined downward to the bridge 1100 as it is located closer to thebridge 1100 when viewed in the radial direction of the drain tray outlet1021 a. Specifically, the second discharging guide rib 1112 a may becombined with the first discharging guide rib 1111 a such that it isinclined in the direction in which the discharged air spreads out as itgets nearer to either ends from the center. Accordingly, the seconddischarging guide rib 1112 a may force the air discharged from the draintray outlet 1021 a to spread out toward the bridge 1100, therebyminimizing the second section S2. That is, it may force air to bedischarged in all directions of the AC 1011 if possible.

Referring to FIG. 35, the second discharging guide rib 1112 b may beinclined downward to be away from the bridge 1100 as it is locatedcloser to the bridge 1100 when viewed in the radial direction of thedrain tray outlet 1021 a. Specifically, the second discharging guide rib1112 b may be combined with the first discharging guide rib 1111 b to beinclined in the direction in which the discharged air converges as thesecond discharging guide rib 1112 b gets nearer to either ends from thecenter. Accordingly, the second discharging guide rib 1112 b may form apowerful air flow by gathering air discharged from the drain tray outlet1021 a.

Referring to FIG. 36, the housing 1010 may only include the seconddischarging guide rib 112 c without the first discharging guide rib1111.

Furthermore, although not shown, the first discharging guide rib 1111may be arranged to be inclined to be away from the inlet 1020 in theradial direction of the drain tray outlet 1021 a, so that the airdischarged from the drain tray outlet 1021 a may spread out from theinlet 1020 in the radial direction of the drain tray outlet 1021 a.

As shown in FIG. 38, the middle housing 1012 may include a middlehousing outlet 1021 b corresponding to the outlet 1021 of the bottomhousing 1013 and the drain tray outlet 1021 a of the drain tray 1016,and in the middle housing outlet 1012 b, there may be a housingdischarging guide rib 1113 corresponding to the second discharging guiderib 1112 of the drain tray 1016. The housing discharging guide rib 1113may be arranged on the same plane with the second discharging guide rib1112 and combined with the second discharging guide rib 1112.

FIG. 37 is an expanded view of part ‘O’ indicated in FIG. 29. FIG. 38 isa view exploded into the middle housing and bottom housing as shown inFIG. 28. FIG. 39 shows air circulation by an air flow control device ofthe AC shown in FIG. 26.

Referring to FIGS. 37 to 39, the AC 1001 may further include an air flowcontrol device 1050 for controlling an air flow.

The air flow control device 1050 may control the direction of thedischarged air flow by sucking in air around the outlet 1021 to changethe pressure. Furthermore, the air flow control device 1050 may controlan amount of sucking air around the outlet 1021. In other words, the airflow control device 1050 may control the direction of a discharged airflow by controlling the amount of sucking air around the outlet 1021.

Controlling the direction of a discharged air flow herein refers tocontrolling an angle of the discharged air flow.

In sucking in air around the outlet 1021, the air flow control device1050 may suck in air from a side to a direction in which the dischargedair flow flows.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 37, given that a direction in which thedischarged air flow flows, when the air flow control device 1050 is notactivated, is denoted as direction A1, the air flow control device 1050may be activated to change the direction for the discharged air flow toflow in direction A2 by sucking in air from a side to the direction A1.

At this time, the angle of changing direction may be controlled based onthe amount of air suction. For example, the less the amount of airsuction, the less the angle of changing direction, and the more theamount of air suction, the more the angle of changing direction.

The air flow control device 1050 may suck in air from the outside of theoutlet 1021 in the radial direction. Like this, as the air flow controldevice 1050 sucks in air from the outside of the outlet 1021 in theradial direction, the discharged air flow may widely spread out from thecenter of the radial direction of the outlet 1021 to the outside in theradial direction.

The air flow control device 1050 may include an air flow control fan1060 for producing a sucking force to suck in air around the outlet1021, an air flow control motor 1061 for driving the air flow controlfan 1060, and a guide path 1070 for guiding the air sucked in by the airflow control fan 1060.

The air flow control fan 1060 may be contained in a fan case 1062arranged at an end of the bridge 1100 adjacent to the inlet 1020. In theembodiment, there are three air flow control fans 1060 to correspond tothe number of bridges, but the number of the air flow control fans 1060is not limited thereto, and the number and arrangement of the air flowcontrol fans 60 may be designed in various ways as those of the bridges1100.

Although the air flow control fan 1060 corresponds to a centrifugal fanin the embodiment in the embodiment in connection with FIG. 37, it isnot limited thereto, and other various fans, such as axial-flow fans,cross-flow fans, mixed flow fans, etc., may also be used for the airflow control fan 1060.

The guide path 1070 connects an inflow hole 1071 for sucking in airaround the outlet 1021 to a discharging hole 1072 for discharging thesucked air. A part of the guide path 1070 may be formed on the bridge1100.

The inflow hole 1071 may be formed on the second guide plane 1014 b ofthe bottom housing 1013. The discharging hole 1072 may be formed to beadjacent to the outlet 1021 on the opposite side to the inflow hole1071. Specifically, the discharging hole 1072 may be formed in the fancase 1062 arranged on the bottom of the bridge 1100.

As described above, this structure may enable the air flow controldevice 1050 to discharge the sucked air to the opposite side to thedirection A1 in which the discharged air flow flows, and may widen theangle of discharging air flow, thereby controlling the air flow moresmoothly.

Referring to FIGS. 37 and 38, the guide path 1070 may include a firstpath 1070 a formed in the circumferential direction on the outer side ofthe housing 1010 and funneled with the inflow hole 1071, a second path1070 b extending inward in the radial direction from the first path 1070a, and a third path 1070 c formed inside the fan case 1062. The secondpath 1070 b may be formed on the bridge 1100.

Accordingly, air sucked in through the inflow hole 1071 may bedischarged out of the discharging hole 1072 through the first path 1070a, the second path 1070 b, and the third path 70 c.

The structure of the guide path 1070 is, however, only by way ofexample, and there are no limitations on the structure, shape, andarrangement of the guide path 1070 as long as the guide path 1070connects the inflow hole 1071 and the discharging hole 1072.

Referring to FIGS. 37 and 39, the discharging hole 1072 may be formed todischarge air toward the bottom plane 1103 of the bridge 1100. Thedischarging hole 1072 may be formed below the bridge 1100.

If the air flowing in through the inflow hole 1071 is cooled air,condensation may occur on the outer side of the bridge 1100, i.e., thebottom plane 1103 of the bridge 1100 due to the difference intemperature between inside through which the cooled air passes andoutside of the bridge 1100 while the cooled air is passing the bridge1100.

On the other hand, in the case of AC 1001 in accordance with anembodiment of the present disclosure, because the cooled air sucked inthrough the inflow hole 1071 is discharged to the bottom plane 1103 ofthe bridge 1100 through the discharging hole 1072 formed below thebridge 1100, the difference in temperature between inside and outside ofthe bridge 1100 may be reduced. This may prevent condensation.

Referring to FIGS. 27 and 40, the AC 1001 may further include a displayunit 1120 below one of the plurality of bridges 1100.

The display unit 1120 may display status of operation of the AC 1001 forthe user. Specifically, the display unit 1120 may display, but notexclusively, whether the AC 1001 is operating, directions of thedischarged air flow, whether the AC 1001 is currently driven in coolingmode or heating mode, or various information relating to the AC 1001.

The display unit 1120 may include a discharging guide plane 1122 havingalmost the same shape as that of the discharging guide plane 1101 of thebridge 1100. Accordingly, even the air discharged from the discharginghole 1021 adjacent to where the display unit 1120 is arranged may spreadout while being discharged from the outlet 1021.

Although not shown, in addition to the display unit 1120, one of aremote control receiver (not shown), an input unit (not shown) of the AC1001, and a communication unit (not shown) for enabling communicationwith an external device may also be located below the bridge 1100.

In the case the display unit 1120 is arranged below the bridge 1100, thedischarging hole 1072 is unable to discharge air toward the bottom plane1103 of the bridge 1100. Accordingly, an insulating material may bearranged between the display unit 1120 and the bridge 1100 to preventthe problem of condensation that might otherwise occur on the side ofthe display unit 1120.

Referring to FIGS. 39 and 41, the discharging hole 1072 may furtherinclude a discharging hole rib 1073 that extends in the direction inwhich air is discharged from the discharging hole 1072. In other words,the discharging hole rib 1073 may be formed by extending in the radialdirection of the outlet 1021. The discharging hole rib 1073 may extendhorizontally and/or vertically. While there is one discharging hole rib1073 extending in the vertical direction and four discharging hole ribs1073 extending in the horizontal direction, there is no limitation onthe number of the discharging hole rib 1073.

The discharging hole rib 1073 guides air discharged from the discharginghole 1072 such that the air discharged from the discharging hole 1072may come into contact with the bottom plane 1103 of the bridge 1100 andthen may be discharged in approximately the same direction as thedischarged air flow from the outlet 1021.

Furthermore, when the air flow control device 1050 is not activated,i.e., when some of the air discharged from the outlet 1021 is not suckedin through the inflow hole 1071, it may prevent the some of the airdischarged from the outlet 1021 from flowing into the discharging hole1072.

FIG. 42 shows an embodiment of the discharging hole of FIG. 41 viewedfrom the radial direction of the outlet. FIG. 43 shows an embodiment ofthe discharging hole of FIG. 41 viewed from the radial direction of theoutlet. FIG. 44 is a perspective view of an embodiment of thedischarging hole of FIG. 41. FIG. 45 is a perspective view of anembodiment of the discharging hole of FIG. 41.

Referring to FIG. 42, the discharging hole ribs 1073 a of thedischarging hole 1072 may only extend vertically.

Referring to FIG. 43, the discharging hole ribs 1073 b of thedischarging hole 1072 may only extend horizontally.

Referring to FIG. 44, the discharging hole ribs 1073 c of thedischarging hole 1072, which extend vertically, may be arranged to beinclined at predetermined angles with respect to the direction in whichair is discharged such that the air discharged from the discharging hole1072 may be spread out.

Referring to FIG. 45, the discharging hole ribs 1073 d of thedischarging hole 1072, which extend horizontally, may be arranged to beinclined downward in the direction air is discharged from thedischarging hole 1072 such that the air discharged from the discharginghole 1072 may have approximately the same slope as that of the bottomplane 1103 of the bridge 1100. Accordingly, the air discharged from thedischarging hole 1072 may be smoothly released across the bottom plane1103 of the bridge 1100, thereby reducing the air loss caused by thecollision with the bottom plane 1103 of the bridge 1100.

FIG. 46 is a bottom view of an AC with the grill shown in FIG. 26eliminated. FIG. 47 is a view of part ‘A’ indicated in FIG. 46, viewedobliquely from below. FIG. 48 is a view of part ‘B’ indicated in FIG.46, viewed obliquely from below. FIG. 49 is an embodiment of the bottomhousing of FIG. 48. FIG. 50 is an embodiment of the bottom housing ofFIG. 48.

Referring to FIGS. 46 and 47, the air flow control fan 1060 of the AC1001 may be arranged below the bridge 1100, and may discharge air suckedin from the inflow hole 1071 to the outside of the outlet 1021 in theradial direction through the discharging hole 1072. The discharging hole1072 may be located on the opposite side to the outlet 1021 where theinflow hole 1071 is formed.

Referring to FIGS. 46 and 48, in the case the display unit 1120 isarranged below the bridge 1100, the air flow control fan 1060 a isarranged at an end close to the inlet 1020 of the bridge 110 locatedabove the display unit 1120, and is located on inner side of the outlet1021 in the radial direction with respect to the display unit 1120.

A discharging hole 1072 a through which air is discharged from the airflow control fan 1060 a may be located on a first guide plane 1014 a onthe left to the display unit 1120. Specifically, unlike the fan case1062 arranged adjacent to the bridge 1100 that has no display unit 1120below, a fan case 1062 a containing the air flow control fan 1060 a mayhave an opening 1063 a, through which air is discharged from the airflow control fan 1060 a, located on the left to the display unit 1120,and an extension duct 1064 a arranged for connecting the opening 1063 aof the air flow control fan 1060 a with the discharging hole 1072 aformed on the first guide plane 1014 a. Accordingly, the air sucked inthrough the inflow hole 1071 may be discharged through the discharginghole 1072 a formed on the left to the display unit 1120 withoutinterference with the display unit 1120.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 49, a discharging hole 1072 b may beformed on the right to the display unit 1120. In this case, a fan case1062 b containing an air flow control fan 1060 b may have an opening1063 b, through which air is discharged from the air flow control fan1060 b formed on the right to the display unit 1120, and an extensionduct 1064 b arranged for connecting the opening 1063 b of the air flowcontrol fan 1060 b to a discharging hole 1072 b formed on the firstguide plane 1014 a. Accordingly, the air sucked in through the inflowhole 1071 may be discharged through the discharging hole 1072 b formedon the right to the display unit 1120 without interference with thedisplay unit 1120.

Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 50, a discharging hole (not shown) maybe formed behind the display unit 1120. In this case, air sucked in fromthe inflow hole 1071 may be discharged to the inside of the housing1010.

Specifically, a fan case 1062 c containing an air flow control fan 1060c may have an opening 1063 c, through which air is discharged from theair flow control fan 1060 c formed behind the display unit 1120, i.e.,on inner side of the housing 1010, and a fourth path (not shown)arranged for connecting the opening 1063 c of the air flow control fan1060 c to a discharging hole 1072 c formed inside the housing 1010.Accordingly, the air flowing in through the inflow hole 1071 maysequentially pass the air flow control fan 1060 c, the opening 1063 c ofthe air flow control fan 1060 c, and the fourth path, and may then bedischarged through the outlet.

FIG. 51 is a cross-sectional view cut along line II to II indicated inFIG. 29. FIG. 52 is a bottom view of the middle housing shown in FIG.28. FIG. 53 is an embodiment of the middle housing of FIG. 51. FIG. 54is an embodiment of the middle housing of FIG. 51. FIG. 55 is anembodiment of the middle housing of FIG. 51. FIG. 56 is an embodiment ofthe bottom housing of FIG. 51.

Referring to FIGS. 51 and 52, the middle housing 1012 may furtherinclude partitions 1012 a dividing the guide path 1070.

Specifically, the middle housing 1012 may include partitions 1012 adividing the first path 1070 a funneled with the inflow hole 1071. Thepartitions 1012 a may be arranged to correspond to the number of thebridges 1100. The partitions 1012 a may be arranged at middle pointsbetween the plurality of bridges 1100 on the first path 1070 a forsymmetrically partitioning the first path 1070 a with respect to eachbridge 1100. The partitions 1012 a may divide the guide path 1070 formedbetween the plurality of air flow control fans 1060.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 51, in the case there are three bridges1100′, 1100″, 1100′″ arranged, the partitions 1012 a may be located atmiddle points between the bridges 1100′, 1100″, 1100′″. Accordingly, thefirst path 1070 a may be partitioned into a first part P1, a second partP2, and a third part P3, such that air flowing in through the inflowhole 1071 flows in the parts according to status of driving the air flowcontrol fans 1060 arranged at one ends of the respective bridges 1100′,1100″, 1100′″.

Specifically, if the air flow control fan 1060 located at an end of thefirst bridge 1100′ is driven, only part of the air discharged throughthe outlet 1021 corresponding to the first part P1 flows into the firstpath 1070 a through the inflow hole 1071. If the air flow control fan1060 located at an end of the second bridge 1100″ is driven, only partof the air discharged through the outlet 1021 corresponding to thesecond part P2 flows into the first path 1070 a through the inflow hole1071. If the air flow control fan 1060 located at an end of the thirdbridge 1100′″ is driven, only part of the air discharged through theoutlet 1021 corresponding to the third P3 flows into the first path 1070a through the inflow hole 1071. The air flow control fans 1060 arrangedadjacent to the respective bridges 1100′, 1100″, 1100′″ may be drivenindependently from one another. Accordingly, as for the AC shown in FIG.26, discharged air flows may be independently produced in threedirections with respect to the bridges 1100.

Like this, in the case of the embodiment shown in FIG. 51, as manydifferent air flows as a predetermined number of sections partitionedwith respect to the bridges 1100′, 1100″, 1100′″ may be produced.

The middle housing 1012 may include guiding parts 1017 formed at theother ends of the bridges 1100, that are opposite to the one ends atwhich the air flow fans 1060 are located. The guiding parts 1017 may bearranged at the other ends of the bridges 1100, to which air sucked inaround the outlet 1021 may flow in. The guiding parts 1017 may be formedat a point where the first and second paths 1070 a and 1070 b join. Theguiding parts 1017 guide air moving from the first paths 1070 a to thebridge 1100 to avoid the loss of the airs flowing in from the firstpaths 1070 a arranged on the left and right to the bridge 1100 bypreventing collision when the airs join together. In other words, theguiding parts 1017 may guide air flowing in through the inflow hole 1071to smoothly flow from the first path 1070 a to the second path 1070 b.The guiding part 1017 protrudes to form a curved plane having thesymmetrical shape from the outer circumferential face of the middlehousing 1012.

Referring to FIG. 53, the partitions 1012 b may each be located apredetermined distance from a middle point on the first path 1070 abetween the bridges 1100 as well. In other words, the partition 1012 bmay be located closer to one of the bridges 1100.

Referring to FIG. 54, the partition 1012 c may each be located at apoint where the bridge 1100 and the first path 1070 a join.Specifically, the partitions 1012 c may be arranged at right ends to thebridges 1100. In this case, the guiding parts 1017 c each protrude toform a curved plane at the right end to the bridge 1100 such that airflowing in from the first path 1070 a formed on the left to the bridge1100 is guided to the bridge 1100.

In the case of an embodiment shown in FIG. 54, different air flows maybe produced with respect to the outlet 1021 between the plurality ofbridges 1100.

Referring to FIG. 55, the partitions 1012 d may also be arranged at theleft ends to the bridges 1100. In this case, the guiding parts 1017 deach protrude to form a curved plane at the left end to the bridge 1100such that air flowing in from the first path 1070 a formed on the rightto the bridge 1100 is guided to the bridge 1100.

In the case of an embodiment shown in FIG. 55, different air flows maybe produced with respect to the outlet 1021 between the plurality ofbridges 1100.

Referring to FIG. 56, partitions 1012 e and guiding parts 1017 e may bearranged in the bottom housing 1013. In this case, locations of thepartitions 1012 e and shapes of the guiding parts 1017 e may bedetermined as described above in connection with FIGS. 51 to 55.

FIG. 57 is an embodiment of the AC 1001 of FIG. 26. As for theembodiment shown in FIG. 57, like reference numerals are used for likecomponents of the AC 1001 of FIG. 26, so the description will be omittedbelow.

The air flow control device 1050 for controlling an air flow ofdischarged air by sucking in air discharged from the outlet 1021 may beleft out from an AC 1002 shown in FIG. 57. Accordingly, the AC 1002shown in FIG. 57 may exclude the inflow hole 1071 and the discharginghole 1072.

FIG. 58 is an embodiment of the AC of FIG. 26. As for the embodimentshown in FIG. 58, like reference numerals are used for like componentsof the AC 1001 of FIG. 26, so the description will be omitted below.

An AC 1003 shown in FIG. 58 may further include an auxiliary inlet 1083to suck in outdoor air in addition to the inlet 1020. The auxiliaryinlet 1083 may be arranged on the outer circumferential face of theupper housing 1011. The auxiliary inlet 1083 may be built into theceiling C. The auxiliary inlet 1083 may be arranged outside of theceiling C. Outdoor air sucked in through the auxiliary inlet 1083 maypass the heat exchanger 1030 and may then be discharged through theoutlet 1021.

As such, the AC 1001 in accordance with the present disclosure mayprevent the air discharged from the outlet 1021 from being sucked backinto the inlet 1020, thereby preventing condensation from being formedinside the housing 1010 and improving effective performance of the AC1001 felt by the user by reducing the loss of the discharged air flow.

FIG. 59 is a perspective view of an AC indoor unit, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 60 is a side cross-sectionalview cut along the line I to I indicated in FIG. 59. FIG. 61 is anexploded view of an AC, according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure. FIG. 62 is an exploded view of a bottom housing of an AC,according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 63 is abottom view of an AC with a second bottom housing eliminated, accordingto an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 64 is an enlarged viewof a part of what is shown in FIG. 60.

Referring to FIGS. 59 to 64, schematic features of an AC in accordancewith an embodiment of the present disclosure will now be described.

An AC indoor unit 2001 may be installed on the ceiling C. At least apart of the AC indoor unit 2001 may be embedded in the ceiling C.

The AC indoor unit 2001 may include a housing 2010 having an inlet 2011and an outlet 2033, a heat exchanger 2080 arranged inside the housing2010, and a blower fan 2040 for circulating air.

Viewed from the vertical direction, the housing 2010 may have anapproximately circular shape. The housing 2010 may include a top housing2020 arranged inside the ceiling C, a middle housing 2021 combined onthe bottom of the top housing 2020, and a bottom housing 2030 combinedon the bottom of the middle housing 2021.

A bottom housing 2030 may include a first bottom outer housing 2031 aarranged around and below the middle housing and having a ring shape, afirst bottom inner housing 2031 b arranged on the inner side of thefirst bottom outer housing 2031 a in the radial direction and having aring shape, and a second bottom housing 2032 combined onto the bottom ofthe first bottom inner housing 2031 b for covering the bottom of thefirst bottom inner housing 2031 b (see FIG. 62). Alternatively, thefirst bottom inner housing 2031 b and the second bottom housing 2032 maybe integrated in one unit.

At a center part of the bottom housing 2030, an inlet 2011 having theform of an opening funneled from the outside to a blower fan 2040 tosuck in outdoor air may be arranged. Specifically, the center part ofthe second bottom housing 2032 is opened, and the space funneled fromthe opening of the second bottom housing 2032 to the blower fan 2040allows outdoor air to be sucked to the inside of the housing 2010.

A suction panel 2015 including a suction grill 2016 formed in aplurality of holes to cover the inlet 2011 and suck air into the inlet2011 may be arranged below the inlet 2011, and an outlet 2033 fordischarging air may be formed outside of the suction panel 2015 in theradial direction. Viewed from the vertical direction, the outlet 2033may have an approximately circular shape.

The outlet 2033 may be formed in a gap formed between the first bottomouter housing 2031 a and the first bottom inner housing 2031 b, i.e.,between the first bottom outer housing 2031 a and the first bottom innerhousing 2031 b in the radial direction. In other words, the outlet 2033may be defined to be the space formed between the inner circumferentialface of the first bottom outer housing 2031 a and the outercircumferential face of the first bottom inner housing 2031 b from theopening of the middle housing 2021.

However, the outlet 2033 is not limited thereto, but may be any space,an opening formed on the bottom housing 2030, funneled with the outsidesuch that heat-exchanged air from a heat exchanger 2080 is dischargedout of the bottom housing 2030.

With this structure, an AC indoor unit 2001 may suck in air at thebottom, cool or heat the air, and discharge the cooled or heated air outof the bottom.

A Coanda curved part to guide the air discharged through the outlet 2033may be formed on the inner circumferential face of the first bottomouter housing 2031 a. The Coanda curved part 2034 may guide an air flowdischarged though the outlet 2033 to adhere closely to and flow acrossthe Coanda curved part 2034.

A filter 2017 may be combined onto the top of the suction panel 2015 tofilter out dust from air sucked into the suction grill 2016.

At the center part of the second bottom housing 2032, a suction guide2100 may be formed to guide air passing the suction panel 2015 to moveto the blower fan 2040. As described above, an opening is formed at thecenter part of the second bottom housing 2032, and the suction guide2100 may be arranged on the opening of the second bottom housing 2032 toguide air flowing into the opening to move to the blower fan 2040.

Viewed from the vertical direction, the heat exchanger 2080 may have anapproximately circular shape.

The heat exchanger 2030 may rest on a drain tray 2090 for condensedwater generated in the heat exchanger 2080 to be collected in the draintray 2090.

The blower fan 2040 may be located on inner side in the radial directionof the heat exchanger 2080. The blower fan 2040 may be a centrifugal fanthat sucks in air in the axial direction and releases the air in theradial direction. The AC indoor unit 2001 may include a blower motor2041 for driving the blower fan 2040. It may also include a blower faninflow hole 2042 through which air sucked from the inlet 2011 is movedto the blower fan 2040.

With this structure, the AC indoor unit 2001 may suck in air in a room,cool or heat the air, and then release the cooled or heated air back tothe room.

The AC indoor unit 2001 may further include an air flow control device2050 for controlling a discharged air flow.

The air flow control device 2050 may control the direction of thedischarged air flow by sucking in air around the outlet 2033 to changethe pressure. Furthermore, the air flow control device 2050 may controlan amount of sucking air around the outlet 2033. In other words, the airflow control device 2050 may control the direction of a discharged airflow by controlling the amount of sucking air around the outlet 2033.

Controlling the direction of a discharged air flow herein refers tocontrolling an angle of the discharged air flow.

In sucking in air around the outlet 2033, the air flow control device2050 may suck in air from one side of a direction in which thedischarged air flow flows.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 64, given that a direction in which thedischarged air flow flows when the air flow control device 2050 is notactivated is denoted as direction A1, the air flow control device 2050may be activated to change the direction for the discharged air flow toflow to direction A2 by sucking in air from one side to the directionA1.

At this time, the angle of changing direction may be controlled based onthe amount of air suction. For example, the less the amount of airsuction, the less the angle of changing direction, and the more theamount of air suction, the more the angle of changing direction.

The air flow control device 2050 may discharge the sucked air to theopposite side to the direction A1 in which the discharged air flowflows. By doing this, it may expand the angle of discharging air flow,thereby controlling the air flow more smoothly.

The air flow control device 2050 may suck in air from outside of theoutlet 2033 in the radial direction. Like this, as the air flow controldevice 2050 sucks in air from the outside of the outlet 21 in the radialdirection 2033, the discharged air flow may widely spread out from thecenter part of the outlet 2033 in the radial direction to the outer sidein the radial direction.

The air flow control device 2050 may include an air flow control fan2060 for producing a sucking force to suck in air around the outlet2033, an air flow control motor 2061 for driving the air flow controlfan 2060, an air flow control fan case 2062 that covers the air flow fan2060 and the air flow control motor 2061, and guide path 2070 forguiding the air sucked in by the air flow control fan 2060.

The air flow control fan 2060 may be housed inside the bottom housing2030. Specifically, the air flow control fan case 2062 may be arrangedin the space formed in the first bottom outer housing 2031 a. It is,however, not limited thereto, and the air flow control fan 2060 may bearranged inside the bottom housing 2030 and also be arranged in thespace formed in the first bottom inner housing 2031 b or the secondbottom housing 2032 as well as the first bottom outer housing 2031 a.

In the embodiment, there may be three air flow control fans 2060 eachformed with 120 degrees. The air flow control fan 2060 is not limitedthereto, but more or fewer air flow control fans 60 with variousarrangements may be designed.

Although the air flow control fan 2060 corresponds to a centrifugal fanin the embodiment, it is not limited thereto, and various fans, such asaxial-flow fans, cross-flow fans, mixed flow fans, etc., may also beused for the air flow control fan 60.

The guide path 2070 connects an inflow hole 2071 for sucking in airaround the outlet 2033 to the discharging hole 2072 for discharging theair sucked in.

The inflow hole 2071 may be formed on the Coanda curved part 2034 of thefirst bottom housing 2031.

The discharging hole 2072 may be located around the outlet 2033 on theopposite side to the inflow hole 2071. Specifically, the discharginghole 2072 may be formed in the second bottom housing 2032.

As described above, this structure may enable the air flow controldevice 2050 to discharge the sucked air to the opposite side to thedirection A1 in which the discharged air flow flows, and may widen theangle of discharging air flow, thereby controlling the air flow moresmoothly.

The guide path 2070 may include a first path 2070 a formed in thecircumferential direction of the housing 2010 and funneled with theinflow hole 2071, a second path 2070 b extending inward in the radialdirection from the first path 2070 a, and a third path 2070 c formed inan area in which the air flow control fan 2060 is safely received.

Accordingly, air sucked in through the inflow hole 2071 may bedischarged out of the discharging hole 2072 through the first path 2070a, the second path 2070 b, and the third path 2070 c.

The guide path 2070 may be formed by the middle housing 2021, the firstbottom housing 2031 a, 2031 b, and the second bottom housing 2032.Specifically, the first and second paths 2070 a and 2070 b may be formedin an internal space formed by the middle housing 2021 and the firstbottom housing 2031 a, 2031 b, and the third path 2070 c may be formedin an internal space formed by the second bottom housing 2032 and theair flow control fan case 2062.

The structure of the guide path 2070 is, however, only by way ofexample, and there are no limitations on the structure, shape, andarrangement of the guide path 2070 as long as the guide path 70 connectsthe inflow hole 2071 and the discharging hole 2072.

In the first bottom outer housing 2031 a, there may be bridges 2074arranged to partition the outlet 2033 and form the second path 2070 b.In the embodiment, there are three bridges.

With the structure, the AC indoor unit in accordance with embodiments ofthe present disclosure may control a discharged air flow without a bladestructure, as compared to a conventional AC indoor unit in which a bladeis arranged in the outlet and an air flow is controlled by turning theblade. Accordingly, because there is no interference by a blade, anamount of discharge may increase and circulation noise may be lessened.

Furthermore, in contrast with the conventional AC indoor unit having anoutlet that has to be formed in a straight shape to turn the blade, theAC indoor unit according to embodiments of the present disclosure has anoutlet that may be formed in a circular shape, and accordingly thehousing and the heat exchanger may also be formed in the circular shape,thereby improving the aesthetic appearance with the differentiateddesign. Furthermore, given that the shape of a common blower fan iscircular, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, air flows morenaturally, pressure loss is reduced, and as a result, cooling or heatingperformance of the AC may be improved. In the following, a suction guide2100 to guide air to be sucked into the AC indoor unit 2001 will bedescribed in detail.

FIG. 65 is a perspective bottom view of a separated suction panel of anAC, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 66 is apartially cross-sectional view of a suction guide of an AC, according toan embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 67 is an exploded view ofsome parts of an AC, according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

Referring to FIG. 65, the suction guide 2100 to guide outdoor airflowing into the housing 2010 may be arranged between an inlet 2011 anda blower fan inflow hole 2042.

The suction guide 2100 may be arranged in the form of a tube between theinlet 2011 and the blower fan 2040 by extending from the inlet 2011 andthe blower fan inflow hole 2042 such that outdoor air may pass throughthe inlet 2011 and flow into the blower fan 2040.

The suction guide 2100 may include a guide plane 2110 extending from theinlet 2011 to the blower fan inflow hole 2042 and having the curvedform.

The guide plane 2110 is a part of the inner circumferential face of thesuction guide 2100, and may be formed in a ring shape that encloses theouter circumferential face of the inlet 2011 and extends to the blowerfan inflow hole 2042. Furthermore, the guide plane 2110 may pass throughan opening 2091 formed at a center part of a drain tray 2090 and extendfrom the inlet 2011 to the blower fan inflow hole 2042.

The air sucked in through the inlet 2011 is guided by the guide plane2110 to flow into the blower fan 2040 and may then be heat-exchangedwith the heat exchanger 2080. That is, the space formed by the guideplane 2110 may be a suction path 2120 through which the air flows.

The suction guide 2100 may include a round part 2111 formed to berounded and curved between the inlet 2011 and the blower fan inflow hole2042. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 65, the round part 2111 may beformed to be rounded toward the inner side of the housing 2010 from theinlet 2011 to the drain tray 2090.

The guide plane 2110 may include the round part 2111 and may extend to aside adjacent to the blower fan inflow hole 2042. Specifically, theguide plane 2110 may be defined as the inner circumferential face of thesuction guide 2100 extending from the round part 2111 to the blower faninflow hole 2042.

The suction path 2120 may be formed by the round part 2111 to have astreamlined shape to promote smooth air circulation from the inlet 2011to the blower fan inflow hole 2042.

The round part 2111 may be formed such that a cross-sectional area ofthe suction path 2120 formed adjacent to the inlet 2011 is wider than across-sectional area of the suction path 2120 formed on the side of thedrain tray 2090.

Specifically, the suction path 2120 may have a curved plane in which theround part 2111 is convex toward the inner side of the housing 2010 withrespect to a rotation axis of the blower fan 2040, such that the radiusof the guide plane 2110 formed adjacent to the blower fan inflow hole2042 extends less than the radius of the guide plane 2110 formedadjacent to the inlet 2011.

The round part 2111 is not limited thereto, but may be formed in a roundform that extends from the inlet 2011 to where the blower fan inflowhole 2042 is located, and may include a curved plane concave to theinner side of the housing 2100 with respect to the rotation axis of theblower fan 2040.

The round part 2111 may start bulging from a side adjacent to the inlet2011 and stop bulging between the inlet 2011 and the drain tray 2090.

Specifically, one side of the round part 2111 may be in an area locatedon the upper side than the inlet 2011, and the other side of the roundpart 2111 may be in between the inlet 2011 and the drain tray 2090, theother side being bulged to be turned 90 degrees from the one side of theround part 2111.

The round part 2111 is, however, not limited thereto. For example, theround part 2111 may start bulging from the inlet 2011 and the other sideof the round part 2111 may be arranged in the blower fan inflow hole2042 while passing through the drain tray 2090 so that the bulge maylead to the blow fan inflow hole 2042 from the inlet 2011.

Due to the round part 211, the guide plane 2110 does not have a planevertical to the rotation axis of the blow fan 2040, thereby promotingsmooth air flow.

As the suction guide 2100 passes through the drain tray 2090 and extendsfrom the inlet 2011 to the blower fan inflow hole 2042, the drain tray2090 may not be exposed to the outside by being covered by the suctionguide 2100.

Specifically, the outer circumferential face of the suction guide 2100may be formed in the direction facing the inner circumferential face ofthe housing 2010 so as not to be exposed to the outside, and the innercircumferential face of the suction guide 2100 may be arranged in theform that is funneled to the blower fan 2040 from the outside and thusnot be exposed to the outside. Accordingly, the drain tray 2090 may belocated on the outer side of the outer circumferential face of thesuction guide 2100 not to be exposed to the outside.

In other words, no drain tray 2090 may be arranged on the suction path2120 formed by the guide plane 2110 located in the inner circumferentialface of the suction guide 2100. That is, the guide plane 2110 may beformed in order to separately arrange the suction path 2120 and thedrain tray 2090.

In the case of the conventional AC, part of the drain tray is located inthe suction path to interfere with the air flow. In particular, in thecase of part of the drain tray arranged to be vertical to the rotationaxis of the blower fan, it blocks flow of sucked air, thereby reducingan amount of the air flowing into the blower fan and making significantnoise due to collision with the drain tray.

On the contrary, in accordance with an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, as the suction guide 2100 separates the drain tray 2090 fromthe suction path 2120, the above problems occurring in the conventionalAC may be solved.

Especially, in addition to separating the drain tray 2090, the roundpart 2111 may be arranged in the section covering the drain tray 2090 inorder not to block air flow but to promote smooth air flow into theblower fan 2040.

Furthermore, as will be described later, built-in parts of the AC indoorunit 2001, such as a control case 2200 may be arranged on the edge sideof the opening 2091, and covered by the suction guide 2100 not to bearranged in the suction path 2120.

Because the built-in parts, such as the drain tray 2090 and the controlcase 2200 are covered by the suction guide 2100 and exclude a planeformed in the suction path 2120 to be vertical to the rotation axis ofthe blower fan 2040, air fluidity may increase while frictional noisemay be minimized.

In particular, in an embodiment of the present disclosure, noise made inthe suction path 2120 may be reduced by about 1.5 dB when the AC indoorunit 2001 is driven with the suction guide 2100 assembled, as comparedto when the AC indoor unit 2001 is driven with the suction guide 2100eliminated.

To explain the suction guide 2100 in some perspective, an opening of theside of the blower fan 2040 formed to allow air to be sucked into theblower fan 2040 may be defined as a first inlet 2042 a, an openingformed on the housing 2010 to allow air to flow to the inner side of thehousing 2010 may be defined as a third inlet 2011 a, and an openingformed in the drain tray 2090 to allow the air sucked in through thethird inlet 2011 a to pass through the drain tray 2090 may be defined asthe second inlet 2091 a.

The suction guide 2100 may be arranged to extend from the side of thefirst inlet 2042 a to the side of the third inlet 2011 a, and to passthrough the second inlet 2091 a formed between the first and thirdinlets 2042 a and 2011 a (see FIG. 61).

As the suction guide 2100 passes through the second inlet 2091 a, thesuction guide 2100 enables the drain tray 2090 arranged on the outerside of the outer circumferential face of the suction guide 2100 to beseparated from the suction path 2120 formed by the inner circumferentialface of the suction guide 2100.

Furthermore, the third inlet 2011 a may be formed by the round part 2111to be larger in radius than the first inlet 2042 a, and the second inlet2091 a formed between them has a smaller in radius than the third inlet2011 a.

An embodiment of the suction guide 2100′ will now be described. Otherfeatures than the suction guide 2100′ and the drain tray 2090′ as willbe described below are the same as features in the aforementionedembodiment, so the description will be omitted.

FIG. 68 is a cross-sectional view of a part of a suction guide of an AC,according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The suction guide 2100′ may be arranged in the form of a tube betweenthe inlet 2011 and a drain tray 2090′ by extending from one side wherethe inlet 2011 is arranged to the other side where the dray tray 2090′is located, in order to allow outdoor air to flow in through the inlet2100 to the blower fan 2040 via the suction guide 2100′ and the draintray 2090′.

The other side of the suction guide 2100′ may be connected to an opening2091′ of the drain tray 2090′, and form a tube shape connected to theguide plane 2100′ and the opening 2091′ on the inner side of the housing2010.

In other words, unlike the suction path as described in connection withthe aforementioned embodiment, the suction path 2120′ may be formed byparts of the suction guide 2100′ and drain tray 2090′. Specifically, asthe guide plane 2110′ extends from the round part 2111 to one side ofthe inner circumferential face of the opening 2091′ of the drain tray2090′, the suction path 2120′ may be formed in a section extending alongthe guide plane 2110′ to the other side of the inner circumferentialface of the opening 2091′ of the drain tray 2090′.

The suction guide 2100′ may be arranged to be in contact with one sideof the inner circumferential face of the opening 2091′ of the drain tray2090′ without a gap. Accordingly, air may be guided and moved from theinlet 2011 to the blower fan 2040 through the suction path 2120′.

As one side of the inner circumferential face of the opening 2091′ is incontact with the guide plane 2110′ without a gap, the side of the guideplane 2110′ coming into contact with the opening 2091′ and the one sideof the inner circumferential face of the opening 2091′ may have theradius of the same size. Accordingly, because there is no structureformed in the suction path 2120′ to be vertical to the rotation axis ofthe blower fan 2040, air may flow into the blower fan 2040 withoutrestriction of the fluidity.

The other side of the inner circumferential face of the opening 2091′extends to the side of the blower fan inflow hole 2042, thereby guidingair to flow into the blower fan 2040.

Accordingly, unlike the aforementioned embodiment, even if part of thedrain tray 2090′ is exposed to the suction path 2120′, air may be guidedto the blower fan without restricting the air fluidity.

In other words, in the case of the conventional AC, part of the draintray arranged in the suction path interferes with the air fluidity, butin accordance with the embodiment of the present disclosure, the problemarising in the conventional AC may be solved by the drain tray 2090′forming the suction path 2120′ including a streamlined feature with thesuction guide 2100′, which does not interfere with the air fluidity.

In the following, a control case 200 will be described in detail.

FIG. 69 is an exploded view of a control case, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 70 is a floor plan of aPrinted Circuit Board (PCB), according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure. FIG. 71 is a floor plan of a PCB assembled in the lower caseof a control case, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.FIGS. 72 to 75 illustrate a wire held in a wire holder, according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

Referring to FIGS. 66 to 69, the control case 2200 may be arranged on anedge side of the opening 2091 of the drain tray 2090.

The control case 2200 may include a curved part 2250 corresponding tothe outer circumferential face of the opening 2091. This is to preventthe control case 2200 from being arranged in the suction path 2120 whilebeing arranged on the outer circumferential face of the opening 2091.

Specifically, the curved part 2250 of the control case 2200 may bearranged to correspond to the edge side of the opening 2091, so thatthere may be no part of the control case 2200 arranged on the outer sideof the drain tray 2090, especially on the inner side of the opening2091.

In the case of the conventional AC, the control case may be arranged onthe drain tray in a similar way to the embodiment of the presentdisclosure, but the control case has the form of a box, part of which isexposed to the outer side of the drain tray and located in the suctionpath 2120, thereby interfering with air fluidity, making noise, andreducing a quantity of fluid.

Such problems may be solved in the embodiment of the present disclosure,where the control case 2200 is not exposed to the outer side of thedrain tray 2090 and thus not located in the suction path 2120.

Furthermore, as the control case 2200 includes the curved part 2250, itmay be covered by the suction guide 2100. Specifically, the curved part2250 may be formed to correspond to the outer circumferential face ofthe opening 2091 as well as to correspond to the outer circumferentialface of the suction guide 2100.

The outer circumferential face of the suction guide 2100 may have aradius of curvature corresponding to the inner circumferential face ofthe opening 2091 because it passes through the opening 2091, and becausethe curved part 2250 includes a curved plane having a radius ofcurvature corresponding to the outer circumferential face of the opening2091, the outer circumferential face of the suction guide 2100 and thecurved part 2250 may include their respective curved planes of acorresponding form.

With the curved part 2250, the suction guide 2100 may be arranged tohave the inner circumferential face of a streamlined form as a wholewithout additional change in the shape, because the control case 2200has no part protruding to the inner side of the suction guide 2100.

The control case 2200 may be arranged on the outer side of the outlet2091 in the radial direction to be located on the drain tray 2090, andmay be arranged between the inlet 2011 and the drain tray 2090 withrespect to the vertical direction of the AC indoor unit 2001.

As described above, because the round part 2111 of the suction guide2100 is formed between the inlet 2011 and the drain tray 2090, thecontrol case 2200 may further include a curved part 2250 correspondingto the round part 2111 in the vertical direction.

Specifically, when the curved part 2250 corresponding to the opening2091 is called a first curved part 2251, the control case 2200 mayinclude a second curved part 2252 that has a curved plane correspondingto the round part 2111 in the vertical direction.

The control case 2200 may be covered by the second curved part 2252 withthe suction guide 2100. Because the second curved part 2252 has a curvedplane corresponding to the round part 2111, the control case 2200 may bearranged close to the outer circumferential face of the suction guide2100.

Accordingly, the suction guide 2100 may be arranged to have the innercircumferential face of a streamlined form as a whole without additionalchange in the shape, because the control case 2200 has no partprotruding to the inner side of the suction guide 2100 even in thevertical direction.

As shown in FIG. 69, the control case 2200 may include an upper case2210 that has the first and second curved parts 2251 and 2252, a lowercase 2220 that has the first curved part 2251, and a PCB 2230 arrangedbetween the upper and lower cases 2210 and 2220.

As shown in FIG. 70, the PCB 2230 may include the first curved part2251. This is to maintain the shape of the entire control case 2200 asthe PCB 2230 is assembled inside the cases 2210, 2220.

However, if, unlike the embodiment of the present disclosure, the PCB2230 is arranged on only a part of the internal area of the cases 2210,2220 because the PCB 2230 is smaller in area than the cases 2210, 2220,the PCB 2230 may not include the first curved part 2251.

As shown in FIG. 71, a wire holder 2260 to hold a wire 2231 extendingfrom the PCB 2230 may be formed in the lower case 2220.

The PCB 2230 may be electrically connected by the wire 2231 to internalcomponents of the AC indoor unit 2001 for controlling the internalcomponents. Otherwise, if the wire 2231 is disorderly placed inside thecases 2210, 2220, it is likely to be damaged. The wire holder 2260 maythus be arranged to orderly arrange the wire 2231.

The wire holder 2260 may be placed on one side or both sides of thespace where the PCB 2230 is located in the lower case 2220. Among theentire wire 2231 extending to either sides from the PCB 2230, some maybe held by the wire holder 2260 while others may extend to the outsideof the cases 2210, 2220.

The wire holder 2260 may be formed by three hooks 2261, 2262, and 2263arranged in the form of a triangle. It is, however, not limited to theembodiment, but may be formed by two hooks or four or more hooks.

Given that there are a first hook 2261 arranged on the top, a secondhook 2262 arranged on the bottom left, and a third hook 2263 arranged onthe bottom right with respect to the arrangement of the form of thetriangle, projections of the respective hooks 2261, 2262, 2263 may bearranged toward the center of the arrangement of the form of thetriangle.

There may be passing regions 2264, 2265, 2266 formed between the hooks2261, 2262, 2263, through which the wire 2231 passes.

When the space between the first and second hooks 2261 and 2262 isdefined as a first passing region 2265, the space between the second andthird hooks 2262 and 2263 a second passing region 2266, and the spacebetween the third and first hooks 2263 and 2261 a third passing region2266, the wire 2231 may pass at least two different passing regions ofthe three passing regions 2264, 2265, 2266 and extend to the inner sideof the cases 2210, 2220.

As shown in FIGS. 72 to 75, if the wire 2231 extends from the bottom ofthe PCB 2230 with respect to the plane of the lower case 2220, the wire2231 may pass through the first and second passing regions 2264 and 2265and extend to the outside of the cases 2210, 2220.

Furthermore, if there is a need to adjust the length of the wire 2231because the wire 2231 is too long, the length may be adjusted byextending part of the wire 2231 to the third passing region 2266.

If being extended from the top of the PCB 2230, the wire 2231 may passthe first and third passing regions 2264 and 2266 and extend to theoutside of the cases 2210, 2220.

Moreover, if there is a need to adjust the length of the wire 2231because the wire 2231 is too long, the length may be adjusted byextending part of the wire 2231 to the second passing region 2265.

According to embodiments of the present disclosure, an AC indoor unitmay control a discharged air flow by sucking air from around an outletwithout a blade.

As the AC indoor unit controls a discharged air flow without a blade,reduction in an amount of discharge due to interference by the blade maybe lessened.

As the AC indoor unit controls a discharged air flow without a blade,circulation noise may be reduced.

Furthermore, an outlet of the AC indoor unit may be implemented not onlyin the conventional straight-line shape but also in other variousshapes, such as circular and curved shapes.

The AC may also prevent air discharged from the outlet from being suckedback into the inlet.

By preventing the air discharged from the outlet from being sucked backinto the inlet, the AC may prevent condensation from being formedinside.

The AC may also increase a range the discharged air reaches, therebyimproving its effective performance felt by the user.

The AC may also increase cooling/heating efficiency.

In addition, with a suction guide of the AC, a path of air sucked in bythe suction guide improves, leading to increase in air flow and decreasein noise.

Moreover, with a control case of the AC to improve air flow, air flowincreases while noise decreases.

While the disclosure has been shown and described with reference tocertain exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understood by thoseskilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be madetherein without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure asdefined by the appended claims and their equivalents.

DESCRIPTION OF THE SYMBOLS

-   1, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600, 700: AC Indoor Unit-   10: housing-   14: Coanda Curved Part-   15: Grill-   16: Drain Tray-   20: Inlet-   21: Outlet-   30: Heat Exchanger-   31: Header-   32: Tube-   40: Blower Fan (Main Fan)-   41: Blower Motor-   50: Air flow Control Device-   60: Air flow Control Fan (Auxiliary Fan)-   61: Air flow Control Motor-   62: Fan Case-   70: Guide path-   70 a, 70 b, 70 c: First, Second, Third Path-   71: Inflow Hole-   72: Discharging Hole-   90: Input Unit-   A1, A2: Discharged Air flow

What is claimed is:
 1. An air conditioner comprising: a housing having an inlet and an outlet; a heat exchanger arranged inside the housing; a fan arranged to draw air into the housing through the inlet to heat exchange with the heat exchanger and discharge the heat-exchanged air from the housing through the outlet; and a drain tray arranged to collect water condensed at the heat exchanger, wherein the drain tray comprises a discharging guide rib arranged to guide the air discharged through the outlet.
 2. The air conditioner of claim 1, wherein the discharging guide rib extends in a circumferential direction relative to a center of the air conditioner.
 3. The air conditioner of claim 1, wherein the discharging guide rib extends in a radial direction relative to a center of the air conditioner.
 4. The air conditioner of claim 3, wherein the drain tray comprises a plurality of discharging guide ribs, and the plurality of discharging guide ribs are arranged along a circumferential direction relative to the center of the air conditioner and are arranged to be separate from one another.
 5. The air conditioner of claim 4, wherein the plurality of discharging guide ribs are arranged to be parallel to one another.
 6. The air conditioner of claim 4, wherein a gap between a pair of neighboring discharging guide ribs of the plurality of discharging guide ribs increases in a flow direction of the discharged air.
 7. The air conditioner of claim 4, wherein a gap between a pair of neighboring discharging guide ribs of the plurality of discharging guide ribs decreases in a flow direction of the discharged air.
 8. The air conditioner of claim 3, wherein the housing comprises a discharging guide rib extending in a radial direction relative to the center of the air conditioner to correspond to the discharging guide rib of the drain tray.
 9. The air conditioner of claim 8, wherein the discharging guide rib of the drain tray and the discharging guide rib of the housing are arranged to abut each other.
 10. The air conditioner of claim 9, wherein the discharging guide rib of the drain tray and the discharging guide rib of the housing are arranged to be coplanar.
 11. The air conditioner of claim 8, wherein the discharging guide rib of the housing is arranged to extend across the outlet of the housing.
 12. The air conditioner of claim 1, wherein the drain tray comprises an outlet arranged to correspond to the outlet of the housing, wherein the discharging guide rib of the drain tray is arranged to extend across the outlet of the drain tray.
 13. The air conditioner of claim 1, wherein the housing comprises a top housing and a bottom housing, wherein the bottom housing comprises an inner housing having an outer guide surface and an outer housing having an inner guide surface, and an outlet path for the outlet is formed between the outer guide surface and the inner guide surface.
 14. The air conditioner of claim 13, wherein the drain tray is arranged between the top housing and the bottom housing.
 15. The air conditioner of claim 13, wherein the outlet is arranged to correspond to an outlet of the drain tray.
 16. The air conditioner of claim 13, wherein the housing further comprises a middle housing arranged between the top housing and the bottom housing, wherein the drain tray is arranged between the top housing and the middle housing.
 17. The air conditioner of claim 1, wherein the discharging guide rib extends from the drain tray.
 18. An air conditioner comprising: a housing having an inlet and an outlet; a heat exchanger arranged inside the housing; a fan arranged to draw air into the housing through the inlet to heat exchange with the heat exchanger and discharge the heat-exchanged air from the housing through the outlet; and a drain tray arranged to collect water condensed at the heat exchanger, and including an outlet arranged to correspond to the outlet of the housing and a discharging guide rib arranged to extend across the outlet of the drain tray to guide the air discharged through the outlet of the housing. 